Police find woman, Sauerbeck in bushes

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Pitcher apologizes for arrest

Police find woman, Sauerbeck in bushes

Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Paul Hoynes
Plain Dealer Reporter

Indians left-hander Scott Sauerbeck apologized to his family and others
Tuesday afternoon after being arrested with a woman at 5 a.m. while
hiding in the bushes in the back yard of a home in Sheffield Village.

"I need to apologize first and foremost to my family," Sauerbeck said
while sitting in the Indians dugout at Jacobs Field. "I'm sorry to my
teammates, the organization and any fans I may have caused
embarrassment to."

Manager Eric Wedge said Sauerbeck was available for Tuesday night's
game against the White Sox.

Sheffield Village police arrested Sauerbeck, 34, and Lily Miller, 28,
after they fled a car that pulled into the back yard of a home on Abbe
Road. It took police 45 minutes to find Sauerbeck and Miller, who were
hiding between a house and some bushes, after apparently jumping a
chain-link fence.

Neither Sauerbeck, who lives in Avon, nor Miller, from Lakewood, lived
at the address.

"In trying to do the right thing; I made a terrible error in judgment,"
Sauerbeck said. "It's something I'm going to have to life with the rest
of my life. I'm a big boy, and I'm going to have to deal with it."

When asked to expound on his "right thing" statement, Sauerbeck said,
"I'd love to, believe me, but legally, I can't get into it."

Sauerbeck met with Indians General Manager Mark Shapiro and Wedge on
Tuesday.

"Anytime there's a distraction from what we're trying to accomplish on
the field, that's something I'm disappointed in," Shapiro said. "Scott
understands how we feel professionally. He understands our
disappointment."

Said Sauerbeck, "I've talked to Mark and Wedgie. They know my side of
the story."

Shapiro said the team would not discipline Sauerbeck.

"We'll let the legal system run its course," Shapiro said.

Police say they spotted a 1966 Lincoln convertible, with the top down
and Florida plates, driving erratically toward Sheffield at 3:45 a.m.
Sheffield Village police were alerted and followed the car when it
turned into the Abbe Road driveway.

Sauerbeck was charged with obstructing official business and wrongful
entrustment. Miller was charged with obstructing official business and
driving while intoxicated. Her blood-alcohol level was 0.253 percent. A
person in Ohio is presumed by law to be impaired at 0.08 percent.

Sauerbeck was not tested because he wasn't driving.

They were both released on a $122 bond and must appear in Avon Lake
Municipal Court on Thursday.

Sauerbeck, born in Cincinnati, and his wife, Carly, have two sons,
Jackson and Calvin. They live in West Bradenton, Fla.

The Indians signed Sauerbeck in 2004 when he was unable to pitch
because of shoulder surgery. He signed a one-year, $1.2 million deal
with the Indians over the winter instead of filing for free agency.

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