A-Rod Paid His Cousin $900,000 To Shut Up About Steroids

The last time we checked in with Alex Rodriquez's cousin Yuri Sucart, he was taking the fall for all manner of steroids-related sins. As first reported in the New York Daily News, we now know why: Rodriguez paid him a cool $900,000 to do so.

A whole host of documents related to the case became public in the District Court of Southern Florida today. Sucart had claimed that he was too poor to afford his lawyer, so prosecutors presented evidence that this was not true. One piece of evidence was a merciless December 18, 2012 letter Sucart's then-lawyer wrote to Rodriguez, which included this passage:

Yuri, even after he was accused of being a steroid mule for you, kept your confidences of all your activities while you played for the Rangers and Yankees.

Yuri has chosen to life [sic] a quiet life and continued [sic] to protect you from the media, by not giving interviews, making book deals, or otherwise revealing his life as a personal assistant to arguably one of the best baseball players of all-time. He protected your reputation, your confidences, your secrets. He was and continues to be loyal to you.

Later, on June 5, 2013—two months before the MLB would suspend Rodriguez for 211 games (reduced to 162 on appeal)—Rodriquez and Sucart agreed to a confidential settlement that paid Sucart $900,000. That's not quite the $5 million and an estate that Sucart originally demanded in the December 2012 letter, but it's a pretty nice chunk of change.

Meanwhile, the case against Sucart for illegally supplying testosterone continues, and Rodriguez is expected to testify:

"That is what it sounds like. It sounds like A-Rod is a potential witness against his cousin," Sucart's court-appointed attorney, Edward O'Donnell IV, told the Daily News. "They are not allies, that's for sure, or friends."

The letter, confidential settlement agreement, and other documents are below. Let us know in the comments if you find anything interesting.

[ Daily News]

Photo via Kevin Cox/Getty