Golden Gate Sports
Fansided

San Francisco Giants: CEO Larry Baer should be held accountable

By Carlos Murillo

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - OCTOBER 2: San Francisco Giants President Larry Baer speaks at the 2011 OpenWorld Conference on October 2, 2011 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California. The Oracle OpenWorld Conference, the largest of its kind, will continue through October 6. (Photo by Stephen Lam/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - OCTOBER 2: San Francisco Giants President Larry Baer speaks at the 2011 OpenWorld Conference on October 2, 2011 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California. The Oracle OpenWorld Conference, the largest of its kind, will continue through October 6. (Photo by Stephen Lam/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

San Francisco Giants CEO Larry Baer will not have charges brought against him for his domestic violence incident, but he should still be held accountable.

San Francisco Giants CEO Larry Baer will not be charged with after a public altercation with his wife, Pam Baer, was caught on video and subsequently released by TMZ. The incident, which occurred on March 1st, reportedly started as a verbal disagreement and escalated when the Giants executive attempted to wrestle his phone away from his wife’s grip, eventually causing her to fall as she screamed for help.

The San Francisco District Attorney’s office released a statement regarding their decision, saying that “after a careful review of the relevant evidence, including multiple videos, statements from several witnesses and the parties themselves, the evidence does not support filing criminal charges.”

More from Golden Gate Sports

Baer has escaped legal ramifications for this, clearly, inappropriate and wrong behavior. White men in positions of power generally have an easier time sidestepping criminal punishment than everybody who isn’t that, even in a city that prides itself on how woke it is. Money, status, and race play an unfortunate role in this country’s criminal justice system, even when the crime–in this case, it’s domestic violence–has been caught on camera.

While Mrs. Baer released a statement in which she seems to blame herself or, at least, attribute an equal responsibility to herself for the incident (click here for the statement released through her attorney).

Let’s make this clear: she was not at fault. Even if she had his phone, that type of aggressive violence from her husband is unacceptable and the survivor of domestic violence should not b blamed. Her screams, terrifyingly haunting, make it clear that this is no regular argument between a couple; it’s domestic violence. And even if this was the first time Baer abused his wife, that is one time too many.

Major League Baseball has the opportunity to, even slightly, rectify what the law got wrong. Baer should be held accountable for his actions. Though the Giants announced that he would be taking a leave of absence from the team, that isn’t enough. Domestic violence is too serious of an issue for a slap on the wrist as punishment.

Those #InternationalWomensDay hashtags are meaningless if you do nothing to actually help create a better world for women. Abuse by powerful white men often goes unchecked and the MLB can help make a small, but important stride towards changing that.

San Francisco mayor London Breed released a statement urging the league to take action against Baer to “send a message that any and all acts of violence against women are unacceptable.” Several Bay Area groups came together to write a letter to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred to make sure Baer is held accountable for his actions.

Baer deserves to be treated just like a player who committed acts of domestic violence would, too. As a leader of a franchise and a community, Baer must be better and a requirement to engage and listen to organizations and individuals who have an intimate understanding of domestic violence and its impact should be included. Survivors of domestic violence should have their voices heard and their ideas followed.

We cannot pick and choose who we let get away with domestic violence. It would be hypocritical to call out people we like and overlook the actions of individuals that we support, even the President of our favorite baseball team. That line of thinking needs to change.

This was domestic violence and it should be treated as such by the MLB. Acknowledging that I am a man that has, thankfully, never been a victim of domestic violence, don’t believe that Baer is irredeemable, but he needs to re-earn the trust and respect of his community, especially that of the women who call themselves baseball fans. A lot of work must be done.

The MLB has to get this right. Not only would taking action against Baer make a difference in this particular situation, but it also sets a precedent and sends a message. Powerful men are not above judgment.

Next. Warriors aren't better without KD. dark

In light of the disgusting-albeit-unsurprising manner in which the case surrounding the New England Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft has been handled, letting Baer step away from the team on his own terms with no other source of accountability would be wrong. Baer has helped bring a lot of joy to the Bay Area, but there isn’t enough built up goodwill in the world to excuse his actions and the actions of powerful people like him.

Do the right thing, Major League Baseball.

Home/San Francisco Giants