ORANJESTAD, Aruba -- Baltimore Orioles pitcher Sidney Ponson has been detained on suspicion of assaulting a local judge at a beach in Aruba on Christmas Day, police said Sunday.
Ponson, who was born in Aruba, has not been formally charged but he is expected to be arraigned Monday on assault and battery charges, police spokesman Edwin Comenencia said.
Ponson's attorney, Chris Lejuez, did not immediately return several telephone calls seeking comment.
The incident happened Saturday afternoon at a beach in west-coast Boca Catalina when several people confronted Ponson, saying he was harassing them with his personal watercraft and operating it recklessly, police said.
The 28-year-old right-hander allegedly struck one of them men in the group several times, police said. The man was later identified as a local judge whose last name is Noordhuizen, Comenencia said.
The judge was hospitalized but his condition was not known, authorities said. Ponson fled the scene but police detained him late Saturday, police said.
He is being held at a jail in the community of San Nicolas, police said.
It was not clear whether Ponson was living in the Dutch Caribbean territory for the offseason or just visiting. The U.S. Major League Baseball Web site says Ponson has made Baltimore his offseason home for the past three years.
Ponson went 11-15 with a 5.30 ERA in 33 starts and 215.2 innings pitched last season. He has played his entire career with the Orioles except for a brief stint with the San Francisco Giants in 2003. He became a free agent after that season and signed a $22.5 million, three-year contract with Baltimore.
He has a 69-80 career record in seven seasons with a 4.67 ERA and 802 strikeouts in 210 games and 1,313 innings pitched.
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