Rafael Furcal was arrested Wednesday in South Florida on felony charges, according to the Associated Press.
The three-time major-league All-Star and 2011 World Series champion was booked for charges of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and throwing a missile into a public or private dwelling.
Furcal, who turned himself in at Broward County jail then was released on bond, was issued a warrant by the Sunrise, Florida Police Department on Monday.
What Happened?
According to Fox News, the whole incident started when Furcal, the 2000 National League Rookie of the Year with the Atlanta Braves, nearly collided with a truck near his home in South Florida.
Fox News reports that after the incident, Furcal repeatedly threw rocks at the victim and also hurled a plastic bottle at the person. The victim receiving lacerations from being struck by the repeated punches before punching Furcal then leaving the scene.
The victim also claimed that he feared for his life due to the incident.
Furcal’s charge of missile throwing is from rock throwing. According to Florida statute 790.19, “Whoever, wantonly or maliciously, shoots at, within, or into, or throws any missile or hurls or projects a stone or other hard substance which would produce death or great bodily harm, at, within, or in any public or private building … of this state shall be guilty of a felony of the second degree.”
But Furcal’s account is reportedly different. According to Hector Gomez of Z101 in the Dominican Republic, Furcal was attacked by the truck driver with a knife and was trying to defend himself by throwing the rocks.
According to Gomez, the charges are under further investigation after Furcal’s account.
A Solid Player
Furcal was a star-caliber infielder for the star-laden Braves in the early 2000s, and he was a member of three All-Star teams with Atlanta, the Los Angeles Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals and Miami Marlins.
Furcal’s best season was 2005, where hefinished tied for seventh in the NL in wins above replacement (6.5) and helped Atlanta win 90 games and the National League East. He slashed .281/.346/.402 that season then signed a three-year, $39 million contract with the Dodgers, where he posted a career-best OPS of .814 in 2006.
Furcal finished with 113 homers and 69 career triples over his 1,614-game MLB career.
But Furcal’s career was not without incident. As a rookie, he was arrested for driving under the influence and underage alcohol consumption when as a 19-year-old he reportedly had a 0.11 blood-alcohol level and failed field sobriety tests.
Furcal later served a 21-day jail sentence after his second DWI, four years later, in 2004. He served his sentence after the Braves were eliminated from the postseason by the Houston Astros that year.
Baseball is running in Furcal’s family too, since his son Rafael Jr. is playing as a freshman at San Jacinto College in Houston. Rafael Jr slashed .302/.402/.568 with three triples and eight homers while helping the Ravens reach the Region XIV Super Regionals.
Rafael Sr.’s incident with the truck driver happened after he was coming home from seeing his son play in the Region XIV Baseball Tournament.
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