New on Sports Illustrated: The Most Amusing Thing About Alex Rodriguez Potentially Owning the Mets: TRAINA THOUGHTS

Could Alex Rodriguez be worthy of being an owner, but not a Hall of Famer?

1. Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez were in on buying the Mets, then they were out and now it seems they’re back in.

I don’t really care if A-Rod becomes an MLB owner or not, but after watching ESPN’s recent 30-for-30 on Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa—which made sure to take down Barry Bonds—it’s more fascinating than ever that players who did PEDs can’t be in a museum, but they can own a team.

Obviously, the difference between Rodriguez and most players who used PEDs is that Rodriguez paid his price and served a suspension. Others, like Sosa, still haven’t admitted to ever using any performance enhancers.

However, what Rodriguez did before actually getting suspended—besmirching Bud Selig, blaming reporters, lying constantly—was pretty deplorable. However, all seems to be forgiven with Major League Baseball when it comes to A-Rod.

The difference, of course, is that the Hall of Fame is controlled by writers. Who owns a team is controlled by MLB. And clearly MLB has forgiven Rodriguez for his past behavior.

But if Rodriguez did buy the Mets, it will be pretty laughable that he’s allowed to be an owner, but he’s not allowed to get in the museum.

Rodriguez won’t be on the Hall of Fame ballot until 2022, so who knows how writers will vote. But given their tendency to act like PED users are on par with serial killers, A-Rod shouldn’t hold his breath about getting in. But would he even care if he’s running the Mets?

2. This was a great moment during MLB Network’s documentary on Ken Griffey Jr., that debuted last night.

3. In honor of the 10-year anniversary of LeBron James’, The Decision, ESPN will air an investigative special on it this Sunday night.

4. The Karate Kid was released on this date–June 22–in 1984. On top of being one of the all-time great films, it also gave us one of the all-time great musical sequences in movie history.

5. This week’s Sports Illustrated Media Podcast features two interviews.

First up is New York Post sports media reporter Andrew Marchand to discuss several recent sports media stories, including MLB signing a new contract with Turner Sports for big money, the future of Trey Wingo at ESPN, how NFL broadcasts will handle kneeling this season, Drew Brees’s status with NBC and much more.

Following Marchand, L.A. Times sports columnist Arash Markazi joins the podcast to talk about Las Vegas’s reopening. Markazi was there for a week and tells us what the casinos, tables, pools and sportsbooks were like in the age of COVID-19.

You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher and Google Play.

6. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: If you noticed Ja Rule trending on Twitter today, this is why. The rapper is starring in a new–and outstanding–commercial for a Greek deli.

7. SPORTS VIDEO OF THE DAY: Old Tiger Stadium is my all-time favorite stadium, so here’s some more Ken Griffey Jr., doing his thing at that ballpark.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Stitcher. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter and Instagram.