According to a story from The Athletic, Mike Clevinger is being looked into for charges of domestic violence and child abuse. The mother of Clevinger’s 10-month-old child, Olivia Finestead, reportedly communicated with MLB’s Department of Investigations about the abuse this summer.
BREAKING: Chicago White Sox pitcher Mike Clevinger is under investigation by MLB following allegations of domestic violence involving the mother of his 10-month-old daughter and child abuse. Story with @KatieJStrang :https://t.co/Fw7tMJ6ak7
— Britt Ghiroli (@Britt_Ghiroli) January 24, 2023
The White Sox asserted in a statement that they were unaware of the accusations before signing Mike Clevinger. The report also quotes a person who claims that the White Sox weren’t made aware of the accusations until after they signed both Clevinger and the other player.
The report goes into detail on two incidents of domestic violence. First, Finestead said that in June, Mike Clevinger choked her. In a hotel room two weeks later, Finestead claimed that Clevinger had smacked her and thrown used chewing tobacco on their child.
According to Finestead, the second incident happened while the Padres were traveling for a series against the Dodgers and Clevinger was a member of the team at the time. According to Clevinger’s agent, Seth Levinson told The Athletic concerning the issues that
“We need to fairly and thoroughly protect our client and at the same time be respectful of the White Sox and MLB. We need time before responding.”
Before speaking with The Athletic on Tuesday, she publicly disclosed the investigation in an Instagram story that also featured several images of the alleged occurrences. On her Instagram page she wrote
“I hope the MLB does what they should and puts him in required therapy maybe even a small suspensions so he can take time out to think about why he abuses his kids and their mothers,”
according to Finestead, the violence and abuse occurred When Mike Clevinger was a member of the San Diego Padres last summer. He agreed to a $12 million one-year contract with the White Sox in December after being a free agency. The White Sox noted in a letter to Ghiroli and Strang that they learned of the accusations after Clevinger’s signing:
“Major League Baseball and the Chicago White Sox take any allegations very seriously, and the White Sox are completely supportive of the Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse policy shared by MLB and the MLBPA.
They added
“MLB opened an investigation after learning of these allegations. The White Sox were not aware of the allegations or the investigation at the time of his signing. The White Sox will refrain from comment until MLB’s investigative process has reached its conclusion.”
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A trade from Cleveland brought Mike Clevinger to the Padres in the middle of the 2020 campaign. He missed all of 2021 while recovering from Tommy John surgery, but he made 23 appearances the last year.