On Saturday, December 28th, the Florida Highway Patrol reported that Dodgers star Yasiel Puig was arrested for driving 110 mph in a 70 mph zone. Puig was in a white Mercedes when he was pulled over that morning and charged with reckless driving. Puig was later released on a $500 bond.
If anyone is interested in seeing Yasiel Puig NOT bat-flipping in his mugshot, here’s it is:
Arrest mug shot of Los Angeles Dodger All-Star Yasiel #Puig. Read full story at http://t.co/bIvMfQFn5v. pic.twitter.com/i1wZeXIwPx
— Dave Osborn (@NDN_dosborn) December 28, 2013
Puig was arrested earlier this April for driving 97 in a 50 mph zone and swerving in and out of his lane in Chattanooga, TN. The charges were later dropped after Puig served 12 hours of community service in Los Angeles. That debacle flew under the radar (somewhat) as Puig was currently playing with the Dodgers’ Double-A team before his call-up in June.
The Dodgers released a statement Sunday relaying that they are “very disappointed” in Puig and adding his antics are a “very serious issue to us.”
It’s interesting that the organization’s statement sounds similar to their unspoken actions in discipling Puig for his on-field antics during the 2013 season. The statement also suggested that the Dodgers will continue to dedicate themselves to educating Puig both on and off the field.
Things like this make me wonder what the trade-off is for extraordinary talent. Does what a player does in his free time ultimately prove detrimental to the team?
The Giants can somewhat relate to some bad press with Pablo Sandoval’s sexual assault charges in 2012 and Chad Gaudin’s Gurney-Gate situation in 2013. Although I believe neither of those situations were proved (Sandoval’s charges were dropped due to insufficient evidence and I believe Gaudin’s case is still pending), do instances like these change your opinion on the players and whether you want them on the team?
Despite the rivalry between Los Angeles and San Francisco, I sincerely hope Puig can get his act together and eliminate the recklessness on the road. He can keep the recklessness on the field though. I really enjoy watching him miss the cutoff man and overrun fly balls.
