Ex-MLB outfielder Albert Belle arrested for indecent exposure, DUI
Former White Sox, Indians and Orioles outfielder Albert Belle was arrested Sunday night and charged with indecent exposure and DUI after he was allegedly seen urinating in the parking lot of a Scottsdale, Arizona, soccer stadium.
Belle, 51, was arrested by Salt River police outside Phoenix Rising Stadium, according to the Arizona Republic, and booked into the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office jail, according to a spokesperson from the sheriff's office. Belle was later released on his own recognizance, according to the spokesman.
Court records obtained by the Republic show that a man complained to police that his 15-year-old daughter had seen Belle urinating beside the driver's side door of his car in the parking lot. The man yelled at Belle, who allegedly responded by shaking his genitals at the father and daughter.
Belle denied urinating in public, the statement said, but officers saw two wet spots next to the car in the parking lot. Officers also said Belle had bloodshot eyes and his breath smelled like alcohol. He admitted to the verbal altercation and told police he had driven his car.
He was booked on suspicion of two counts of indecent exposure, driving under the influence and DUI with a blood alcohol content of .08 or higher.
Belle's major league career was marked by controversy and a churlish relationship with the media. He was suspended seven games in 1994 for using a corked bat and sending a teammate to break into the umpires' dressing room and replace the bat. In 1996, he was suspended and fined for knocking down Brewers infielder Fernando Vina, breaking his nose, on the base paths. He was treated at the Cleveland Clinic for alcoholism in 1990, while still with the Indians.
Belle was the majors' highest-paid player when the Orioles signed him to a five-year, $65 million deal in 1999, but he retired after two seasons because of degenerative hip osteoarthritis.
A feared slugger, Belle hit 381 home runs, including 50 in the strike-shortened 1995 season.