Ponson, Sidney
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Wikipedia-Article "Sidney Ponson"
Sir Sidney Alton Ponson (born November 2, 1976, in Noord, Aruba) is a Major League Baseball pitcher who plays for the St. Louis Cardinals. Prior to signing with the Cardinals, 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. Except for a brief 2003 stint for the San Francisco Giants, he has spent his entire career in Baltimore.
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."
Ponson has acquired a reputation for being inconsistent, especially in relation to decision games. He has a strong fastball and a decent slider. He has also had problems with his weight over the last few years.
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 two Giants prospects (Kurt Ainsworth and Damian Moss). 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 as 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 canceled 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 finding him guilty of driving while impaired. He was also fined $535. His jail term is expected to begin at 4pm on December 13.
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.
External links
- Baseball-Reference.com - career statistics and analysis
- Ponson released
- Union grievance filed