MLB player Delmon Young charged with attacking attendant
MIAMI (AP) Free agent outfielder Delmon Young was arrested after he choked and threatened a parking attendant at a Miami hotel Sunday night, police said.
Young, a 30-year-old who appeared in 52 games for the Baltimore Orioles last year, grabbed the attendant's neck and called him a ''stupid Cuban,'' according to an arrest report. The attendant told police he had refused to let Young on an elevator to a club at the Viceroy Miami because the club was closed. Young left the area for a short time, then returned and attacked the attendant again, the report said.
The attendant got away and called police. Hotel security staff was familiar with Young and directed officers to his condominium, which is located in the hotel's rear tower.
Young told police he didn't know anything about the attack on the attendant, the report said. An officer went on to describe Young's behavior as belligerent.
Young was arrested and charged with battery. He was released Monday morning on $1,500 bail, according to jail records.
His attorney declined to comment on Monday.
Young was suspended for seven days by Major League Baseball in 2012 after his arrest in New York City. Police said then Young yelled anti-Semitic epithets during a late-night, drunken tussle. He pleaded guilty later that year to aggravated harassment, was ordered to complete 10 days of community service and to enroll in a program at the Museum of Tolerance New York as part of the Manhattan District Attorney's office restorative justice program.
Young was the first pick overall in the 2003 amateur draft and made his big league debut with the Devil Rays in 2006. He also played for Minnesota (2008-11), Detroit (2011-12), Philadelphia (2013) before a second stint with the Rays in 2013 and two seasons with the Orioles. He has a .283 average in 10 big league seasons with 109 homers and 566 RBIs.
While playing for Triple-A Durham in the minor leagues in 2006, he was suspended for 50 games for flinging his bat underhanded, which struck an umpire, following a called third strike. Young said he did not mean to hit the umpire, who was a fill-in while regular minor league umpires were on strike.