"Rogers' behavior was unprofessional, unwarranted, & completely unacceptable" - When Bud Selig & the MLB suspended Kenny Rogers for pushing cameramen
The 2005 season was not one that Kenny Rogers would like to remember. It was filled with incidents of outbursts, one that caused him to break his pinky earlier in the season.
After returning to the mound for a late June start, Rogers grew angry with the on-field cameramen. He initially shouted at Fox Sports Net Southwest photographer David Mammeli before pushing KDFW cameraman Larry Rodriguez and kicking his equipment.
After the incident, MLB Commissioner at the time, Bud Selig, handed Rogers a 20-game suspension and a $50,000 fine. He was extremely disappointed in Rogers' behavior, and made an example out of him, via CBS Sports:
"Mr. Rogers' behavior was unprofessional, unwarranted and completely unacceptable. Major League Baseball is a social institution and all of us in the game have an important responsibility to act with reason and good judgment."
Selig understood that there could be times when a player and the media do not see eye-to-eye, but it cannot result in physical violence:
"While I recognize that the relationship between players and members of the media may sometimes be difficult, there is no circumstance in which a player may settle a difference of opinion or a dispute through physical means."
The incident sent Rodriguez to the hospital and prompted a police investigation. He was then charged with a Class A and a Class C misdemeanor assault charge. The Class A charge was later reduced after Rogers completed an anger management course.
Kenny Rogers only served a 13-game suspension
It only took Bud Selig two days to hand down the 20-game suspension for Texas Rangers pitcher Kenny Rogers. Rogers went to appeal the suspension, but it was upheld by Selig.
However, the commissioner was overruled by an independent arbiter. Shyam Das allowed Rogers to return to the mound just after sitting out 13 games.
Rogers would finish the 2005 season in Texas, but that would be his last. After the season, the club announced that Rogers would not be returning next season, and the lefty signed with the Detroit Tigers in the offseason.
He signed a two-year deal with Detroit where he won 17 games and held a 3.84 ERA in 2006. He felt comfortable with his new squad and connected well with Jeremy Bonderman and legendary manager Jim Leyland. That much showed as he went 23 straight innings without giving up a run in the postseason.