Alex Rodriguez can add another accusation he’ll have to counter to the mounting pile he’s already collected this season.
Reports are now coming out that the Yankees third baseman paid for Tony Bosch‘s attorney, according to ESPN’s T.J. Quinn and Pedro Gomez.
Bosch was the founder of the now-closed Biogenesis clinic that allegedly distributed performing-enhancing drugs to a multitude of major leaguers, most of whom were recently suspended because of ties to the anti-aging clinic.
A spokesperson for Bosch’s attorney Susy Ribero-Ayala said in a statement to Outside the Lines on Sunday that Rodriguez paid her a $25,000 retainer to defend Bosch in February.
“A retainer was paid [via wire transfer] by a representative of Alex Rodriquez [sic]. Ms. Ribero-Ayala accepted this payment on behalf of Anthony Bosch as payment for his legal representation,” the statement said.
Rodriguez then sent over another wire transfer worth $50,000 which was rejected by Bosch’s attorney, and Rodriguez’s camp claims the second payment was a mistake.
“In April 2013, Ms. Ribero-Ayala received an unsolicited and unwarranted wire transfer from A-Rod Corp. The funds were immediately returned. Mr. Rodriquez [sic] does not have any involvement in Mr. Bosch’s legal representation.”
Sources told Quinn and Gomez they believe the second payment was an attempt to keep Bosch from “providing testimony or evidence” against him. Rodriguez was handed the longest suspension — 211 games — because Major League Baseball believes he tampered with the investigation, and MLB plans to use the payments as evidence supporting that claim.
Rodriguez is hitting .319 since returning from the disabled list on August as he plays through his appeal.
