Sidney Ponson
Sidney Alton Ponson (born
November 2,
1976, in
Noord,
Aruba) is a
Major League Baseball pitcher who plays for the
New York Yankees. Prior to signing with the Yankees, Ponson played most of his career with the
Baltimore Orioles. When he made his debut for the Orioles in
1998, he became the third player from Aruba to play in the major leagues.
Ponson attended
Maria College in
Aruba. He was picked up by the Orioles as an amateur in
1993.
After the 2003 season, he was made a
knight by
Queen Beatrix of the
Netherlands. (Aruba is a colony of the Netherlands.) This has earned him the nickname "Sir Sidney."
On
July 7,
2006, The
St. Louis Cardinals designated Sidney Ponson for assignment to make room for their newly aquired pitcher
Jeff Weaver.
In 2003, he went 14-6 with a 3.77
ERA for the Orioles. Because Baltimore was not in contention for a playoff spot and Ponson was in the last year of his contract, the Orioles traded Ponson to the San Francisco Giants at the trading deadline for three Giants players:
Kurt Ainsworth,
Damian Moss and prospect Ryan Hannaman. At the end of the 2003 season, Ponson re-signed with the Orioles for a 3 year, 22.5 million dollar contract.
In 2004, Ponson was the opening day starter for Baltimore. However, he started off disastrously; his record was 3-12 by the All-Star Break. He rebounded for a strong second half, going 8-3. He finished with an 11-15 record and a 5.30 ERA.
On
December 25,
2004, Ponson was arrested in Aruba and charged with assaulting an Aruban judge following an incident about a complaint of Ponson's handling of his powerboat. He spent 11 days in jail, but the charges were dropped after he reached a settlement that included restitution, community service and contributions to local charities on the island. In January 2005, he was charged with
driving under the influence in
Broward County, Florida. Because of these activities, it was thought that he would not be able to enter
Canada to pitch in a series against the
Toronto Blue Jays in May
2005. However, a visa was later granted, and he was able to make his scheduled start.
Baltimore attempted to trade Ponson to
San Diego for first baseman
Phil Nevin shortly before the 2005 trade deadline, but the deal was cancelled when Nevin invoked his no-trade clause. Nevin eventually was traded to
Texas.
Early on the morning of
August 25,
2005, Ponson was arrested for driving under the influence and driving while impaired on southbound
Interstate 95 near downtown
Baltimore, Maryland. He was stopped for following too closely and was subsequently arrested for the traffic violation, DUI, and DWI; he was later released. This was his second drunk-driving incident of 2005.
On
September 1, 2005, the Orioles released Ponson and voided his contract, saying that his infractions with the law went against a morals clause in Major League Baseball contracts. A week later, on
September 8, the Major League Baseball Players Association filed a grievance on Ponson's behalf.
On
December 12, 2005, Ponson was sentenced to five days in the Baltimore city jail after he was found guilty of driving while impaired. He was also fined $535. He was released from jail on
December 19.
On
December 21, 2005, Ponson signed a one-year contract with the
St. Louis Cardinals calling for a $1 million salary with the ability to earn an additional $1.5 million in incentives. On
July 7, 2006, the Cardinals designated Ponson for assignment, ending his stint with yet another team. On
July 14, 2006 he signed on with the New York Yankees. He won his first game, lost the second game, and was sent to the bullpen when the Yankees acquired
Cory Lidle from the
Philadelphia Phillies. Reportedly,
Brian Cashman asked Ponson if he would be amenable to being placed in the pen before going ahead with the trade (which also involved acquiring
Bobby Abreu). If Ponson had refused, he would have been released and the trade that sent
Shawn Chacon to the
Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for
Craig Wilson would have fallen through. [
1]
*
*
Ponson released*
Union grievance filed
