Matt Bush, a No. 1 pick in the MLB Draft who spent six seasons in the majors, was arrested Friday in Arlington, Texas, and charged with driving while intoxicated, evading arrest and accident involving injury.
Arlington Police Department media relations coordinator Tim Ciesco said in an email that Bush, 38, fled from a police officer who tried to pull him over for erratic driving, and shortly after that Bush was involved in a four-car crash, leaving Bush and one person with non-life threatening injuries. Police allege Bush ran a red light and collided with a truck that was passing through the intersection, and that the force of the crash caused Bush to collide with two other vehicles stopped at the traffic light. Bush fled the scene on foot before he was chased down and detained by bystanders, Ciesco said.
He declined a field sobriety test and refused to speak with investigators, who later obtained a warrant for a blood sample, per Ciesco. Upon being cleared by medical staff, he was released from the hospital and transported to the Arlington City Jail, where he was booked on the three charges, Ciesco said, before being transferred to Tarrant County Jail in Fort Worth on Monday.
Bush, who the San Diego Padres selected with the No. 1 pick in 2004, previously spent 39 months in prison for a drunk-driving incident that left a 72-year-old man seriously injured in 2012.
Bush was initially drafted by San Diego as a shortstop. He was suspended before making his pro debut following a fight at an Arizona bar in 2004.
San Diego converted Bush into a pitcher in 2007, but designated him for assignment in 2009 after an alleged assault of two high school lacrosse players.
Bush was released from prison in February 2015 and signed with the Texas Rangers on a minor-league contract. He made his MLB debut in 2016 at age 30 and spent three seasons in Texas before arm injuries kept him out of MLB action until 2021. He was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers in 2022, and then rejoined the Rangers in July 2023. While he never appeared in another game with Texas, he earned a World Series ring after the team defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks that fall.
(Photo: Michael Owens / Getty Images)
