Padilla arrested on suspicion of DWI

The Dallas Morning News has reported that former Phillies pitcher Vicente Padilla was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated nearly a month ago, according to Dallas County court records.

Rangers general manager Jon Daniels told the paper that he was made aware of the arrest, which took place July 7, three days before the start of the All-Star break.

The paper reports that Padilla's attorney, Ron Conover, declined to comment on specific details surrounding the arrest. Conover did, however, say Padilla had a blood alcohol content less than the Texas legal limit of .08. Padilla still does not speak with the media.

Padilla is scheduled to pitch for the Rangers tomorrow.

Comments

[Matt]

No big surprise there. I was at Dave and Busters last year after Padilla got shelled by the Red Sox at CBP. Sure enough, Padilla was there with his handlers, concerned more about sucking down as many drinks as possible as opposed to how awful he pitched in the afternoon game. The bartender told us that he was there "all the time". He may have filthy stuff from time to time, but I'm glad he's no longer a Phillie.

[Drama Queen]

i'm so desperate in my one fantasy league that i almost picked up padilla this morning. glad this report was released before i did that.

[Tom G]

I just realized...Padilla probably doesn't speak to the media because of advice from his attorney. Alchohol slurs Spanish just as well as English.

[Tim]

no comment

[Bonedaddy]

Tom G that was great! ROFL

[Paul]

Now you know why the Phillies traded Padilla.

Gillick's no fool. He knew that trading an established starter would weaken an already mediocre staff but he didn't want to pay Padilla $4.5M to pitch okay and drive drunk. The fact that he swapped Padilla -- even though Rincon didn't work out -- shows once again that Gillick is being proactive and honest about the Phillies' situation. Wade would've signed Padilla to a long-term deal, no doubt.

[dane]

I knew this was coming at some point for Padilla and I'm glad he is no longer our problem.

[Tim]

but padilla was going to win the cy young this year if he stayed here. we would have won 100 gamesif PG wasn't so stupid. if he was here abreu never would have been traded. we should at least gotten lester, papelbon and willy mo for him. morons! why don't you fools know that? now that his value is lowered we should get him back. i give them utley straight up.

[chris]

Somehow, the Yankees have consistently won throughout history with some of the biggest drunks ever on their teams.

We don't even know if this is true, and if it is that separates him from 90% of the fans how?

[Billy]

"but padilla was going to win the cy young this year if he stayed here."

I agree - worst move Gillick made.

"we would have won 100 games if PG wasn't so stupid."

Again, agreed. Seattle 2001 baby.

"if he was here abreu never would have been traded."

Yep, again - correct!

"we should at least gotten lester, papelbon and willy mo for him."

Screw Willy Mo... I'm thinking Manny. Vicente needs a drinking partner.

"morons! why don't you fools know that? now that his value is lowered we should get him back. i give them utley straight up."

At least. They probably wouldn't do the deal for just Utley, so let's throw in Hamels.

[Paul]

Chris,

I think Mickey Mantle had a slightly better skillset than Vicente Padilla! And Mantle's on-field success despite functional alchoholism is nothing to cheer.

Padilla also was rumored to have flipped a car in Nicaragua driving drunk; maybe the Phillies knew more than we do and Gillick actually had the stones to do something about it.

[Tim]

billy - thank you for your support. i'm planning a rally at cbp for the next home game. i'm going to demand we get him back. i'll march to city hall if i have to. harrisburgh even.

can i plan on your being there with me?

[Lake Fred]

Billy and Tim must be hitting the Padilla sauce at the Vincente's Bar and Grill!

Sometimes Clout and RSB are seen there getting into arguments about minor league utility infielders.

[Drama Queen]

I still hate the Padilla trade, not because Padilla is gone, but I think at that point in the offseason Gillick could at least got a reliever that could have helped the team or a guy to stick in the minors, not some guy we'd later release. But hey, that deals is long gone. I'm holding out hope Gillick is going to start rebuilding a contender, because that would be the only acceptable explaination for the Abreu/Lidle/Padilla deals. Things need to start fresh, and I hope that's what this is, not JUST a salary dump.

[Tim]

Rangers general manager Jon Daniels acknowledged that he was made aware of the arrest, which took place July 7, three days before the start of the All-Star break.

"We weren't informed of it until this evening but are actively looking into it now," Daniels said.

the team wasn't told about the arrest of 7/7 until yesterday. nice.

[Mike H.]

Did Mel Gibson have company or something?

Any thoughts from kdon, clout, or the other PG-haters out there? That drunk isn't even worth Ric Rod.

[Tim]

i've started www.savevicente.com

all donations will go toward bring cy padilla back.

thank you.

[MG]

I wonder if Padilla's drinking problem was so bad and well-known that Gillick knew he would only be able to get a bag of baseballs for him. That trade would make alot more sense in retrospect.

[MG]

Sad thing is the Cy Padilla would easily be the 2nd best starter on this team right now.

[joe]

well, if padilla's problems caused him to get lower trade value; imagine what we could get for Burrel!

[clout]

Interesting the excuse-makers say nothing about Brett Myers. Oh, that's right, beating up your wife in public isn't nearly as bad as driving drunk. LOL!

[Lake Fred]

I agree with Clout. I've believe that in my younger days I probably have exceeded the legal blood limit of intoxication on a regular basis. In college we used to schedule classes in order to allow for drinking on certain nights in specific bars with time in the morning free to sleep it off. Today, I rarely drink, and definitely, not to excess, but I never beat up my wife. So in comparing Padilla's behavior to Myers's seems to lean in Padilla's favor, however, Padilla was driving and that can be deadly; causing me to lean in Myers direction. Both are bums in the deportment area. Head to head, I think Myers would win more often than Padilla.

[Tim]

i've also started www.blastbrettmyersbecuaseyoucannotdefendpadia.com

[alby]

Hey, Tim, why don't you start "I don't have a clue but I sure look smart compared to the pack I run with" dot com.

[Will]

I was thinking the same thing clout.

Gillick probably knew all those things, and it may have influenced his decision to let him go (i.e. lowered Padilla's stock in his mind), but he did not trade padilla because he foresaw this breakdown. Especially since this is really a minor offense to a MLB player.

[Tim]

alby - i would but you can't have spaces in a web adress. sorry.