Fausto Carmona, 28-year old starting pitcher for the Cleveland Indians may not be who we thought he was. Carmona was applying for his green card to visit the US and join the Indians in spring training when he was taken under arrest in his native Dominican Republic…because, they claim, he isn’t Fausto Carmona. It appears he is Roberto Hernandez Heredia and really 31 years old. Steven Ocker of the Akron Beacon Journal reported that what Fausto has done was not so uncommon ten years ago when agents in the Dominican helped their teen-aged baseball wiz-kid clients appear to Major League teams to be even younger than they were. “Youth is highly prized in Dominican baseball circles, because major-league franchises operate on the theory that it takes an extra year or two to assimilate disadvantaged, uneducated kids into American culture and teach them the necessary skills to play as professionals,” he wrote.
Whatever Fausto/Roberto’s reasons, he appears to be in a heap of trouble. He was contracted to be paid $7 million this year…but is the contract valid even if he can get out of the DR? Apparently, the Indians still want him…they picked up that option at the end of last season and signed him to play…but clearly the knowledge that he is actually 3 years older than the league thought will hurt him if and when he goes to sign and extended year contract. The whole situation appears to be another example of pro athletes pursuing the big dollar and doing unscrupulous things because of it. And if the reports prove to be true, Fausto got caught because he stopped paying the family of the real Fausto Carmona for borrowing his name and birth date...causing the mother to rat him out to a local radio station. In the end, I’m sure it will all work out and Fausto/Roberto will be pitching somewhere in the Major’s. And if not…he’s already earned $15 million playing the game…so we can stop worrying about where his next meal will come from.
I pulled into a parking lot at the North Chagrin Reservation after work and with dark approaching. The lot had been plowed, but was covered in ice…and I could have done doughnuts all over it and not hit anything. I was alone.
It was cold and the trails were covered in that crunchy, frozen snow that occurs when it’s been really, really cold. It worked for me, though. I started out slowly, trying to keep my balance and gain some traction. I found that it wasn’t too difficult since there was enough new fall to keep me from slipping too badly. The only sounds I could hear was the rasping breathes I was taking and the loud crunch that each footstep made. As is always the case in these conditions, I was working much harder…and running slower. My heart rate was running about 10 beats higher than normal and I had a good sweat flowing in spite of the freezing conditions. I targeted a 40-minute run and was only one minute over at the conclusion. Short, but tough and I knew I was heading home for more time on the trainer.
Except I didn’t ride. Jason was there when I arrived and we were going to be alone for the evening and were both hungry. I suggested we put together some spaghetti and meatballs, but would have to forgo the bike ride to complete the dinner. I don’t get to sit down and eat with Jason often, so I decided to skip the ride…the double workout…and another ‘Everest’ episode. After all…the bike would be there tomorrow and Netflix wasn’t going anywhere and a night with your son easily trumps that.
Run Duration: 41 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 150 bpm.Calories burned during workout: 700.
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