The Baseball Hall of Fame has accepted Roberto Alomar’s resignation from it’s board of directors as of May 3rd 2021. Chairman Jane Forbes Clark made the announcement on Monday marking the latest instance in a string of organizations distancing themselves from the former 12x All-Star in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations levied against Alomar.
The incident in question took place in 2014 and was recently brought to Major League Baseball’s attention by “a baseball industry employee”. After the league hired an external legal firm to look into the allegations, commissioner Rob Manfred made the announcement last week that the MLB would be relieving Alomar of his consulting duties to the league, and put on MLB’s ineligible list effective immediately.
This comes on the heels of the Toronto Blue Jays recent announcement that the club would be severing ties with Alomar (who was currently serving as a special assistant to the organization) while also removing his name from the Level of Excellence and taking down his banner at Rogers Centre.
Despite the allegations and several prominent baseball organizations severing ties with the former 10x Gold Glove winner, neither the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, nor the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame have any plans to remove Alomar’s plaques. While the Canadian HOF offered little in terms of public statements outside of banning him from any future HOF events and distancing itself from Alomar’s charitable foundation, Clark stated that Roberto’s plaque would remain on display because “his enshrinement reflects his eligibility and the perspective of the BBWAA voters at that time.”
In his defense, Alomar took to his Twitter account stating he was “disappointed, surprised, and upset [by the league’s decision]…With the current social climate, I understand why Major League Baseball has taken the position they have….My hope is that this allegation can be heard in a venue that will allow me to address the accusation directly. I will continue to spend my time helping kids pursue their baseball dreams. I will not be making any further comment at this time.”
Lisa Banks (the attorney representing the individual who came forward) says that her client had no current plans to sue Roberto Alomar for damages or take additional action at this time stating “She simply wants to ensure that Mr. Alomar is held accountable for his wrongdoing and hopes her actions can help Major League Baseball create a safer workplace for its employees.”
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @dynessports