Major League Baseball

Red Sox minor league catcher Jon Denney arrested

Published Mar. 15, 2014 7:26 p.m. ET

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FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) Boston Red Sox minor league catcher Jon Denney was arrested and charged with driving with a suspended license.

A report issued by the Lee County Sheriff's Office said Denney, who was arrested Thursday at 4:06 a.m., ''became belligerent'' and began to curse at officers. The 19-year-old Denney faces a March 31 trial date.

General manager Ben Cherington said Saturday the team is putting together a program for Denney to deal with his issues, and he probably won't be on the field for some time.

''We certainly take the incident seriously, as we would with any other player,'' Cherington said. ''We're trying to address his needs and help him in any way we can. But certainly he has some work to do.''

Denney was drafted by the Red Sox in the third round last year out of high school in Oklahoma. He had a .379 on-base percentage with no homers and two RBIs in rookie ball, playing 26 games in the Gulf Coast League.

''Anytime something like this happens, it's a concern,'' Cherington said. ''There's more to playing on the field and performing on the field, not just as a baseball player, but we're all representing the organization in some way and that kind of behavior is unacceptable.''

A player in the Red Sox organization has been arrested during spring training for at least three straight years.

Last season, pitcher Drake Britton was arrested for DUI and reckless driving. In 2012, reliever Bobby Jenks was arrested on two counts of DUI along with property damage and leaving the scene of a crash.

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