ST. LOUIS _ The police investigation into allegations of sexual assault against Pirates third baseman Jung Ho Kang will trigger the first implementation of Major League Baseball's new sexual assault policy.
Last August, MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association announced a joint agreement covering domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse, a development that granted the commissioner's office the power to investigate and punish players regardless of a legal charge or conviction. So far the commissioner's office has investigated at least four players _ Jose Reyes, Aroldis Chapman, Hector Olivera and Yasiel Puig _ under the domestic violence portion of the agreement, and all but Puig were suspended. Kang's case is believed to be the first sexual assault case since the policy took effect.
Chicago police are investigating allegations that Kang sexually assaulted a woman in a hotel last month, when the Pirates were in town to play the Chicago Cubs.
"Major League Baseball will monitor the progress of this investigation closely and will respond fully as additional facts emerge," MLB said in a statement Tuesday evening.
The joint agreement came in the wake of two highly publicized domestic violence cases involving NFL players and the fluid disciplinary structure resulting from them. In a case that played out over several months in 2014, former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was suspended for two games after he punched his then-fiancee, now wife, in a casino elevator. After a more complete video of the incident became public, the NFL suspended Rice indefinitely, but that suspension was overturned after an appeal. Rice was charged with assault before the initial suspension.
Former Dallas Cowboys defensive end Greg Hardy was suspended 10 games in April 2015 for assaulting his girlfriend in 2014, while he was with the Carolina Panthers, but an appeal reduced that suspension to four games. Hardy was found guilty in a bench trial but the case was dismissed when the woman did not cooperate.
The NFL updated its domestic violence policy in August 2014.
Of immediate impact for the Pirates, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred can put a player such as Kang on paid administrative leave for up to seven days while investigating allegations. He can also suspend the player with pay while a legal process unfolds, as he did with Reyes' domestic abuse case, although Kang has not been charged with a crime. Kang remains on the active roster and was in Wednesday's lineup for the Pirates.
Manfred's office has the authority to investigate allegations against everyone in the baseball community. The agreement requires cooperation from the players union, including making the player available for an interview.
"We are hopeful that this new comprehensive, collectively bargained policy will deter future violence, promote victim safety, and serve as a step toward a better understanding of the causes and consequences of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse," union executive director Tony Clark said when the policy was announced in August 2015.
The commissioner's office can impose any discipline it believes is "appropriate in light of the severity of the conduct." MLB has the power to discipline a player regardless of whether or not the player is charged with or convicted of a crime. Players have the right to appeal the discipline to an arbitration panel.
Olivera was suspended 82 games, Reyes 51 and Chapman 30. Those suspensions are without pay, and the players do not accrue major league service time while suspended.
Individual clubs cannot discipline players under the agreement unless the commissioner's office defers the decision to the club. Any club discipline also is subject to an appeal.
