Major League Baseball placed Colorado Rockies shortstop Jose Reyes on paid leave on Tuesday pending the outcome of his domestic violence case in Hawaii.
Commissioner Rob Manfred said baseball’s domestic violence policy allows him “to impose a paid suspension pending resolution of the legal proceedings or an investigation.”
After a ruling is handed down in the criminal case, Manfred will decide on MLB’s disciplinary action against Reyes.
“The Commissioner’s Office will have no further comment on this matter until a final disposition is announced,” the statement read.
A trial is scheduled for April 4 after Reyes allegedly assaulted his wife last October at a hotel in Hawaii.
The Reyes case isn’t the only domestic violence matter shadowing baseball as teams gather for Spring Training.
New York Yankees closing pitcher Aroldis Chapman, accused of choking and shoving his girlfriend at their Miami home in October, said Tuesday that he would appeal any discipline MLB hands down.
“I never hurt anybody, never in my life,” Chapman, who is not facing criminal charges, told reporters at the Yankees’ Spring Training facility in Florida.
Manfred said on Friday at Spring Training media day in Florida that he was “close to making a decision on the cases involving Reyes, Chapman and Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Yasiel Puig. Puig wasn’t charged by authorities after allegedly pushing his sister in November in a bar in Miami.
But Manfred said he would be willing to suspend players even if they aren’t charged.

Nationals’ Zimmerman denies doping allegations
Washington Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman on Tuesday denied doping allegations raised against him in an Al-Jazeera America documentary in December.
Zimmerman and Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard both filed defamation lawsuits against the broadcaster, but Zimmerman’s comments at spring training in Viera, Florida, marked his first public reaction on the matter.
“I’ve never done any of that,” he said.
“I’ve never thought about doing any of that. It’s a tough spot. You do everything the right way. You work. You think something like this will never happen, and then, for some reason, it does.”
In the documentary, Charles Sly, identified as a former pharmacy intern at an Indiana anti-ageing clinic, said he provided Zimmerman and others with Delta-2, a pro-hormone banned by Major League Baseball.
Sly later withdrew his statements, which also included a claim that the clinic shipped human growth hormone to the wife of Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning.
Sly has since withdrawn his comments, saying they weren’t true.
Zimmerman said he felt “a responsibility” to pursue the lawsuit, even though they are “really hard to win.”
“It’s one of those things where privacy is really not privacy anymore for me, and it’s unfortunate that I have to do that, but that’s the steps I’m willing to take to show people that I have nothing to hide,” he said.

Orioles swoop for Fowler to continue off-season drive
The Baltimore Orioles have reached a three-year deal with free agent outfielder Dexter Fowler, Major League Baseball reported on its website on Tuesday.
The contract is expected to be worth around $33 million and continues an off-season of big spending for the Orioles.
Fowler, 29, played for the Chicago Cubs last season and batted .250 with a career-high 17 home runs in 150 games.
He could serve as a lead-off hitter for Baltimore, who will surrender a draft pick to the Cubs this year as compensation for the signing.
The Orioles have been busy since the 2015 campaign ended, and have retained slugger Chris Davis along with catcher Matt Wieters and pitcher Darren O’Day.