Biogenesis scandal ringleader Anthony Bosch has prison term reduced

Written By Marc Lancaster

The man at the center of the Biogenesis drug scandal could be out of prison by the end of 2016.

A federal judge on Thursday approved prosecutors' recommendation to cut Anthony Bosch's sentence due to his cooperation with an investigation that ensnared Yankees star Alex Rodriguez and other baseball players.

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Bosch, 52, was sentenced to four years in prison in February 2015 after pleading guilty the previous October to a conspiracy to distribute testosterone. Federal judge Darrin Gayles, who handed down the initial sentence, agreed Thursday to the reduction while maintaining Bosch deserved the full punishment, the Miami Herald reports.

Bosch, a former cocaine addict, could have another year knocked off the sentence if he completes a drug treatment program at the federal prison in Montgomery, Ala., where he is serving his sentence. If that happens, Bosch would be freed sometime late this year.

When handing down the original sentence, Gayles reserved his harshest criticism for Bosch's treatment of high school players in the Miami area. But most of the public fallout has centered on Rodriguez. The Yankees slugger was suspended for the entire 2014 season by Major League Baseball for his involvement with Biogenesis, and 13 other players including Ryan Braun, Nelson Cruz and Jhonny Peralta also served suspensions for their ties to Bosch's operation.

Rodriguez did not face criminal charges in the case, but his cousin and longtime assistant, Yuri Sucart, pleaded guilty last year to conspiracy to distribute human growth hormone (HGH) and was sentenced to seven months in prison.