Baseball great in a pinch

Blue, who is also facing criminal driving while intoxicated charges in Arizona, faces up to a year in the San Mateo County Jail if convicted of not completing the terms of his probation from the misdemeanor conviction. Prosecutors are also concerned about his March 13, 2005 arrest in Arizona during spring training. However, Cretan has refused to pull Blue, 55, back into custody per prosecutor request.

Blue, a former pitcher for the San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics, was arrested in Scottsdale, Ariz. for investigation of driving under the influence after a minor traffic accident. Blue's blood alcohol level was reportedly over the limit and he admitted to police having one glass of wine. By ingesting any alcohol, though, Blue violates the terms of probation which bans him from even frequenting establishments that sell liquor.

Blue, according to prosecutors, violated probation even prior to the Arizona arrest because he never completed his 20-day jail sentence.

On July 19, 2003, Blue was arrested on Highway 101 in the northern part of San Mateo County. Blue was in his car on the side of the road with the engine running, his foot on the brake and the emergency lights on, according to a California Highway Patrol report. Blue said he was returning home to Tracy from a function at Pacific Bell Park. Two sobriety tests pegged his blood alcohol content at .13. On April 19, 2004, Blue pleaded no contest to one misdemeanor DUI count and was immediately sentenced to three years probation plus 20 days in the sheriff's work program. While on probation, Blue's license was to be restricted to and from a place of employment, offender treatment or the sheriff's work program. As part of his no contest plea, Blue also admitted one prior drunk driving conviction from 2000. His sentence was transferred to Stanislaus County so he could serve his 20-day sentence close to home. He never notified local courts he was accepted into nor completed the work program. A no-bail bench warrant was issued Nov. 29 for failing to appear but his defense attorney Josh Bentley had it recalled in December. Three months later, Blue had his run-in with Arizona police.

Michelle Durand can be reached by e-mail: michelle@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 104. What do you think of this story? Send a letter to the editor: letters@smdailyjournal.com.