Former Greensboro Bat and current Florida Marlins pitcher Scott Olsen was having trouble picking up his signs on Friday night. Things went smoothly for Olsen in Friday night’s game against the Cincinnati Reds, as the south paw went 7 innings while allowing 4 hits and two runs in Florida’s 10-2 win. Olsen’s problems started after the game. In the early hours of Saturday morning, Olsen was observed by police driving 48 mph in a 35 mph zone. When police attempted to pull Olsen over, the Marlin pitcher seems to have gotten a little crossed up. Evidently, the flashing police lights, siren and repeated requests to pull over on a loud speaker gave Olsen the indication that he should proceed to his home rather than pull over. After arriving at home, Olsen sat in a plastic chair in his front yard until more police arrived on the scene and attempted to arrest him on charges that the pitcher was driving while impaired. At this point, Olsen made another mistake, he decided to resist. In pitching terms, that’s like hanging a fat pitch in a power hitter’s kitchen. In how-to-deal-with-the-police terms, the results are very similar – there are going to be plenty of hits to go around.
By the looks of Olsen’s mug shot, the pitcher got the business from police. Reports say that Olsen with finally subdued with a taser. If only Ken Griffey and his Red Legs teammates had been armed with a stun gun when they faced Olsen during the game.
Trouble is nothing new for Olsen, 23, whose attitude has been called into question on a number of occasions after dust ups with several teammates and a manager. Olsen had just finished serving a two-game suspension this week after an altercation with fellow Marlin Sergio Mitre.
It is time for this kid to grow up. He is a left handed pitcher with solid Major League stuff. Those are ingredients for a long big league career. Probably the most important factor in having a long career though is a player’s mental make up. In that department, it looks like the jury is still out on whether or not Olsen has what it takes.