Oneil Cruz is already known for sending baseballs flying.
Now, the Pittsburgh Pirates star is facing a very different kind of attention.
Cruz has reportedly been accused of bringing in a “fixer” to pay the families of three people who died in a tragic car crash. The allegation comes from a new report and has added another dramatic chapter to the baseball star’s legal troubles.
Yes, this story has more twists than a ninth-inning collapse.
ProPublica released a report earlier this week … which alleges that, in 2020, Cruz‘s SUV rear-ended a motorcycle with three people on it, killing all 3 of them, in the Dominican Republic.
According to a press release from authorities at the time, Cruz allegedly “had consumed alcoholic beverages prior to the accident.” The public prosecutor’s office called for the “imposition of preventive detention” at the time.
Enter Santo Caraballo, who ProPublic claims is a “prestamista” — a moneylender who exchanges cash for a future percentage of baseball stars’ earnings years before they make the major leagues. The controversial practice has grown rapidly in Latin American countries in recent years.
Because the DR’s legal system gives victims’ families significant sway over whether to pursue prosecution, family members told ProPublica Caraballo made the issue go away by doling out around $66K to the three families.
The report claims money was offered to the victims’ families in anOneil Cruz effort that could have helped Cruz avoid a harsher outcome.
Prosecutors could still have pursued charges against Cruz … but, because the families reportedly agreed to withdraw all legal claims against Cruz in court docs, the prosecution’s case was flimsy.
Cruz’s lawyer, Amauris Vásquez Disla, told ProPublica that the incident was “a profound tragedy for all parties involved, especially the victims’ families.” He also added that the court “issued an order of dismissal based on the findings, a legally binding decision that was a lawful resolution of this matter.”
That is one way to handle a legal headache.
Whether it was actually legal or appropriate is another question entirely.
In a statement, the Pittsburgh Pirates added they had “addressed this matter more than six years ago based on the information available and the outcome of the legal proceedings.”
Cruz was never suspended for his alleged involvement with the crash. It’s unclear if this new report will lead MLB to open an investigation.
For Cruz, that is probably not the kind of headline any athlete wants attached to his name.
Baseball is supposed to be about home runs, stolen bases and highlight-reel moments, not courtrooms, crash investigations and alleged fixers.
