Milwaukee Brewers ace Yovani Gallardo was arrested and cited for drunken driving early Tuesday morning. Drew Olson of ESPN Wisconsin broke the news, reporting that Gallardo was pulled over at 2:10 a.m. on Interstate 94 near Miller Park for driving too slowly and failing to stay in the lanes.
The Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office said Gallardo’s blood-alcohol level was .22, nearly three times the legal limit of .08.
UPDATE: Tuesday, April 16, at 12:30 p.m. ET by Matt Fitzgerald
The Brewers issued a brief statement regarding Gallardo’s arrest, as documented by beat writer Adam McCalvy of MLBlogs Network:
We have been made aware of the situation with Yovani and we take this matter very seriously. We have expressed our disappointment to him and know he understands that behavior of this nature is of great concern to everyone in the organization. Yovani has acknowledged the seriousness of this incident and is taking full accountability for his actions.
—End of update—
The 27-year-old will not face jail time for this first-time offense, the sheriff’s office told ESPN Wisconsin, but will have to pay hundreds of dollars in fines for operating a vehicle while intoxicated and for drifting outside of the lanes.
In three 2013 starts, Gallardo sports an 0-1 record with a 6.61 ERA. Though he has struggling early in this young season, the right-handed hurler has posted 200 or more strikeouts in each of the past four seasons, and sub-4.00 ERA in each of his six professional seasons.
Gallardo has no prior criminal record, so this setback is not as bad as it could have been. According to Olson, the pitcher is believed to be the first Brewer to be arrested for drunk driving since John Jaha in 1998.
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