Mike Clevinger has yet to throw a pitch for the White Sox, and perhaps he never will.
The Athletic's Britt Ghiroli and Katie Strang reported that Clevinger has been under league investigation for allegations of domestic abuse and child abuse since last summer.
Olivia Finestead, the 24-year-old mother of Clevinger’s child, told The Athletic on Tuesday that she has been in contact with individuals from MLB’s Department of Investigations since this summer. According to Finestead, she has detailed to those investigators incidents of physical, verbal and emotional abuse, including an incident from last June in which Finestead said Clevinger choked her, and another about two weeks later when she said Clevinger slapped her in a hotel room when the team was playing the Dodgers and threw used chewing tobacco on their child.
The story is out now because Finestead disclosed the allegations in an explosive, public Instagram story earlier today. It's easy to search for if you have an Instagram account, but due to the graphic descriptions included, I will leave that to be a personal choice for the reader.
As for the White Sox, they said in a statement that they only became aware of the investigation after signing him to a one-year, $12 million contract that became official in early December.
“Major League Baseball and the Chicago White Sox take any and all 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,” the team said in a statement issued to The Athletic. “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.”
(Eight days passed between the White Sox reportedly agreeing to a deal with Clevinger and the White Sox making it official.)
Due process and all that, but Clevinger's off-field behavior has made news before. Cleveland traded him to San Diego in 2020 shortly after he violated COVID-19 protocols in Chicago, and while he might've been dealt anyway, the displeasure of the front office and his teammates greased the skids.
In 2021, Clevinger's name also surfaced during Trevor Bauer's legal process, as Bauer's accuser confirmed a relationship with Clevinger during a cross-examination in the hearing over granting a restraining order.
About the time of her first sexual encounter with Bauer, the woman said in a message to her cousin: “Trevor is a wackadoodle like Clev.” That message, and the one mentioning Tatis, were not included in the woman’s request for a restraining order. She reluctantly identified Clev as Clevinger.
One shouldn't expect a comment from the White Sox anytime soon if Tony La Russa's DUI charge is any indication. Then again, La Russa's legal trouble was revealed early in early November, and concluded just before Christmas. With pitchers and catchers reporting on Feb. 15, they only have a few more weeks where silence is truly an option.
