According to police reports obtained by multiple news outlets, Dwight Gooden was arrested on drug charges last month. Gooden was arrested on suspicion of possession of cocaine after police discovered two plastic zip-lock bags with what is thought to be cocaine during a traffic stop in Holmdel, New Jersey.
Dwight Gooden, whose drug woes drove him out of a Hall of Fame career, is in trouble again after a recent arrest on cocaine possession.
The former pitcher was found with “two, small green zip-lock style plastic baggies containing suspected cocaine.”https://t.co/x4K0hURQNT
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) July 12, 2019
In addition to being charged for suspicion of cocaine possession, Gooden is being charged with driving under the influence by Monmouth County police. A spokesman said that Gooden was originally stopped by police for driving too slowly and failing to stay in one lane. He is scheduled for a court appearance on July 23.
This is the latest in a series of drug-related issues for the former National League Cy Young Award winner. Gooden has been arrested several times for drugs and alcohol over the last three decades, and substance abuse problems sidelined a promising career.
Gooden took the National League by storm in 1984, walking away with the Rookie of the Year award after leading the NL in K’s and posting a league best 11.4 K/9 and 1.073 WHIP in over 200 innings of work.
He was sensational in 1985 too, winning his lone Cy Young Award with a 24-4 record and a sub-1 WHIP, while leading the NL in strikeouts again. However, he threw an incredible 276 innings that year, and the combination of overuse by manager Davey Johnson and the drug use led to the rapid decline of one of the finest talents to ever pitch in the majors.
Gooden had been largely out of the spotlight for most of this decade. His last run-in with law enforcement was back in 2010, and he was seen taking part in the All-Star festivities in Cleveland earlier in the week. He won a hot dog and a coke from a fan after Pete Alonso beat Carlos Santana in the first round of the Home Run Derby.
H/T New York Daily News
