By Dave Begel Contributing Writer Published Jul 25, 2013 at 11:02 AM

It is time for a leak. A big leak.

Bud Selig, who I like, but who doesn’t like me, should take my advice here and arrange a leak of all the information surrounding the Ryan Braun suspension.

He can’t tell us outright because it would be a violation of the agreement between Major League Baseball and the player’s union. That provision calls for the public announcement of a suspension, but that’s it. Nothing else.

Well, Bud, there is still a lot of wonder out here and Braun’s statement didn’t do anything to clear it up. He admitted to "mistakes," but that’s about all.

Here’s what this is like.

A guy is publicly accused of embezzlement. So the police investigate but don’t tell anyone what they find. The district attorney charges the guy but doesn’t tell anyone he filed the charges. A judge holds a trial that is closed to the public and press. A jury reaches a verdict and tells the judge, but nobody knows about it. And then the judge announces the a 10-year sentence. But nobody knows what crime the guy committed or what kind of proof the state had. All we know is that the guy was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

That’s what this is like and Selig’s office is prevented from giving us the facts.

But Bud Selig is, if nothing else, extremely sophisticated in the ways of the media. If he hadn’t been a car salesman and then a baseball owner and then the commissioner, I am probably not far off by saying he might well have ended up as a sportswriter. Hew would have covered the Packers, who he loves almost as much as the Brewers.

So it’s time for Selig to use his sophistication.

He’s got to call somebody into his office. Someone like John McHale, Jr. who is the executive vice president of administration and chief information officer.

He’s got to tell McHale to call someone from the New York Times or someone from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel or from OnMilwaukee.com and lay it out.

He’s got to tell him to leak the following information: What crime did Braun plead guilty to? What was the evidence the league had against him (detailed and with names and sources of evidence)? How bad was the crime (as in how long had Braun been using and exactly what did he take)? Did Braun finally admit his first off-the-charts of the testosterone test (the one he beat on a technicality)?

Is the punishment for taking the junk or lying about it, or both? Was the 65-game suspension a compromise number and if so, what number did baseball originally want? How many tests will Braun have to undergo when he comes back to whatever team has him (daily sounds about right, at least for the first two years)?

By leaking this information and then refusing to deny or confirm it once Jim Owczarski, our sports editor, writes a column about it, we will all then know. The world will know and that’s a good thing.

Knowledge is never bad. Shining a light on crime is never bad.

Jim will, I promise you, protect McHale and Selig. He never reveals his sources. He’s got ethics. And if he’s tempted, I’ll kick him in the butt and put my hand over his mouth.

Once this gets done, then Selig and McHale and the rest of those guys can begin the laborious process of figuring out how to get rid of all these stupid rules by removing the ban on performance enhancing drugs. Leave it up to each player.

Hey, Buddy (that’s what his friends call him). Time for a major league leak.

Dave Begel Contributing Writer

With a history in Milwaukee stretching back decades, Dave tries to bring a unique perspective to his writing, whether it's sports, politics, theater or any other issue.

He's seen Milwaukee grow, suffer pangs of growth, strive for success and has been involved in many efforts to both shape and re-shape the city. He's a happy man, now that he's quit playing golf, and enjoys music, his children and grandchildren and the myriad of sports in this state. He loves great food and hates bullies and people who think they are smarter than everyone else.

This whole Internet thing continues to baffle him, but he's willing to play the game as long as OnMilwaukee.com keeps lending him a helping hand. He is constantly amazed that just a few dedicated people can provide so much news and information to a hungry public.

Despite some opinions to the contrary, Dave likes most stuff. But he is a skeptic who constantly wonders about the world around him. So many questions, so few answers.