Less than two weeks after being hired to manage the Chicago White Sox for the second time, Hall-of-Famer Tony La Russa has been hit with his second charge of driving under the influence.
The new charge against La Russa stems from an incident in February when he allegedly ran his car into a curb and left it smoking on the side of a Phoenix-area road, according to court records obtained by ESPN.
Following a field sobriety test near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, La Russa, who was “argumentative” and giving off a “light odor of alcoholic beverage,” was taken into custody. La Russa reportedly asked the officer “Do you see my ring?” and told him, “I’m a Hall of Famer baseball person. I’m legit” while being arrested.
“Because this is an active case, we cannot comment further at this time,” White Sox spokesman Scott Reifert wrote in an email.
The 76-year-old previously pleaded guilty to misdemeanor DUI in Jupiter, Florida, in 2007. Video that was released of that incident is not pretty.
“I accept full responsibility for my conduct, and assure everyone that I have learned a very valuable lesson and that this will never occur again,” La Russa said then.
A three-time winner of the World Series, La Russa has a 2,728-2,365 career record that includes a previous stint with the White Sox from 1979-1986 during which he posted a 522-510 record.
La Russa, who was last in the dugout in 2011, is the oldest manager in the major leagues by five years. (Houston’s Dusty Baker is 71.)
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