FOR CARLOS?

Cooperstown takes hit with taint of cheating scandal

and as an educator. The Mets organization and I mutually agreed to part ways, moving forward for the greater good with no further distractions. I hope that at some point in time, I’ll have the opportunity to return to this game that I love so much.”

That statement of contrition from Beltran was a good way to begin earning some trust back from people in the league — including the baseball writers who will decide his fate — after he illegally used technology to steal signs in his final year in the majors. But will it be enough?

Beltran was originally named in The Athletic article published on Nov. 12 as someone who, alongside former Astros bench coach Alex Cora, “played a key role in devising the sign-stealing system the team used that season.” He lost his job as Mets manager last week after being the only player implicated in MLB’s nine-page report, cited as someone who “discussed that the [Astros] could improve on decoding opposing teams’ signs and communicating the signs to the batter.” The league did not discipline him or any other player.

Time will help repair Beltran’s infected character, and writers have certainly altered their perception of players who used PEDs to gain an advantage. The Hall of Fame’s trend is to be forgiving, showing a softening toward cheating in the game. Although, it says something that Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens — who together have 25 All-Star nods and eight MVP awards — are left waiting in the wings.

One league executive pointed out that the manner in which the sitting President conducts his occupation, and the ensuing tame reaction from the public eye, may help Beltran’s chances of getting into Cooperstown.

“We live in a society now where Donald Trump is our President and he’s a lying piece of crap,” that executive told the Daily News. “He’s a Pinocchio President and he can get away with doing anything and everything without being accountable for it. Doesn’t seem like society cares anymore about accountability.”

While the President may slip through the cracks and keep moving forward, can the same be said for the four people who lost their jobs after being named in the commissioner’s report?

Astros GM Jeff Luhnow, manager A.J. Hinch, Red Sox manager Alex Cora and Beltran were the only names implicated in the sign-stealing scandal by the league. And already, many are anticipating that the well-liked Hinch and Cora will manage a big-league team again someday.

Though it’s unlikely baseball won’t forget one of, if not the biggest scandal in the sport’s history, the players involved in making it happen may eventually get a pass. Three years from now, Beltran’s eligibility into baseball immortality will be the first test.