Cabrera won't play on day after new allegations

[March 11, 2011]  JUPITER, Fla. (AP) -- Miguel Cabrera was not on the travel roster for the Detroit Tigers' game Thursday night against the Florida Marlins, a day after authorities released new details about his arrest last month on suspicion of drunken driving.

The team said players miss occasional games during spring training and manager Jim Leyland simply didn't schedule Cabrera against the Marlins. Cabrera is expected to play Friday against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Cabrera was arrested Feb. 16 in Fort Pierce. Documents released Wednesday by the Florida state attorney's office accuse Cabrera of threatening a manager at a restaurant shortly before his arrest.

Fletcher D. Nail, the manager, told police that a man entered after the restaurant was closed for service, was told to leave, then said "I will kill you" to Nail. Nail says he told the man to leave, and the man looked around and said: "I know all you, and I will kill all of you and blow this place up."

The man left, and the manager said he did not realize until the next day that it was Cabrera.

A police report by officer Michael Otto Muller said Cabrera was belligerent with officers. Muller's report said at one point, Cabrera walked out into the highway with his hands in the air, shouting "shoot me, kill me" along with an expletive.

Cabrera is being charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and resisting an officer without violence, both misdemeanors.

Gayle Braun, an assistant state attorney for St. Lucie County, said Cabrera has waived arraignment and submitted a written plea of not guilty. His next court date is April 15 for a docket call, although he is allowed to waive his appearance. The Tigers will be in the middle of a series at Oakland that day.

Any DUI arrest in Florida also includes an automatic roadside suspension of driving privileges, and the suspect can request an administrative hearing to have them reinstated. Cabrera's hearing with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles was supposed to be Thursday, but a continuance was requested and granted. A DHSMV spokesman said Cabrera's hearing date is now scheduled for April 6, but Cabrera does not have to be present. The Tigers play at Baltimore that night.

Florida attorney Michael Kessler is representing Cabrera, and his office said Thursday he has no comment about the case or the new documents.

The 27-year-old Cabrera has struggled with drinking-related problems in the past, but he's coming off perhaps his best season. He hit .328 with 38 home runs last year and finished second in the American League MVP vote.

Late in the 2009 season, police said Cabrera got into a fight with his wife after a night of drinking, shortly before his team lost a key game. The Tigers then lost an AL Central tiebreaker to Minnesota.

General manager Dave Dombrowski had to pick up Cabrera at the station after that incident. No charges were filed.

Last month, Cabrera was spotted by a deputy in a car with a smoking engine alongside a road in Fort Pierce. Inside the vehicle, Cabrera smelled of alcohol, had slurred speech and took a swig from a bottle of scotch in front of a deputy, according to the St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office. He refused to cooperate and more deputies were called to the scene.

According to the police report, Cabrera was wandering into the road with his hands up before he was handcuffed. He kept saying, "Do you know who I am? You don't know anything about my problems," and cursed at deputies who tried to get him into a patrol car.

One deputy struck Cabrera in the left thigh several times with his knee after Cabrera pushed into him, causing the ballplayer to fall into the patrol car. Cabrera refused to take a breath test, deputies said.

[Associated Press]

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