You may have heard the odd story of Elijah Dukes, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays outfielder that is being accussed of threatening to kill his wife and children. What you may not have heard, are some of the things that are noted in this article in the Saint Petersburg Times from last March. Some of the points in the article that seem a whole lot more disturbing given these recent allegations:
"Dukes, 21, said he missed last year's fall instructional season to attend court-ordered anger management classes after a Jan.18, 2005, arrest on a misdemeanor charge of domestic battery. The Times reported the incident was an argument with his sister that turned physical."
"A 2002 Times story told of how his father, Elijah Sr., was convicted of murder when his son was 12, leaving mother Phyllis to raise six kids."
"Dukes left Chamberlain, King and Jefferson high schools and stories of arguments with teachers, teammates and game officials followed."
"Florida Department of Law Enforcement records show Dukes arrested five times since 1998, all on misdemeanor charges."
Sadly for Dukes' wife and children, it does not seem like the latest incident was an isolated one.
In addition to the above issues, Dukes was then suspended in the minors last season for a host of infractions, including arguments with umpires and fights with teammates. And in addition to ALL of that, Dukes was also brought in on charges of marijuana possession this January. Good thing for Dukes that Bud Selig is no Roger Goodell...
Now not to pile on, but in reading the Saint Petersburg Times article it also seems a bit fishy that Dukes showed up to the 2006 camp with 11 lbs more muscle than the year before, and started tearing up camp as a non-roster invitee. I mean, I'm not sayin what I'm sayin, I'm just sayin. Maybe Dukes and Jason Giambi have a similar training regime...
