Imagine the best starting pitcher for your favorite baseball team getting busted for a DUI at a Burger King. Well, that’s the scenario currently unfolding in Kansas City with the Royals.
Starting pitcher Danny Duffy was cited for a DUI while at a Burger King in Kansas City on Sunday night. Per TMZ, Duffy wasn’t arrested because in Kansas you can get a ride home from a friend and deal with the legal consequences later.
What happens next with Duffy is to be determined, but it’s not out of the question that his personal trouble impacts the Royals on the field. KC is one of six teams chasing the Twins and Yankees for a Wild Card spot, and Duffy is scheduled to pitch against the Twins in a big four-game series at Kaufman Stadium next week.
Royals general manager Dayton Moore released the following statement about Duffy, via the KC Star.
“We are obviously disappointed in the news we have received regarding Danny Duffy’s DUI arrest on Sunday night. Danny was not part of the team traveling back from Cleveland on Sunday because he had returned to Kansas City a day earlier to undergo an MRI examination.
“We are still in the early stages of gathering the details, but I do know that Danny has always been accountable as a member of this organization and we expect the same accountability from him as this process moves forward.
“We obviously do not condone anyone driving while under the influence, but this is now a legal matter and we will allow the process to unfold and cannot comment any further.”
The Star notes that MLB rules allow the league or the team, not both, to punish a player for a DUI.
Meanwhile, here’s two photos involving something wearing a crown.
