Former Pirates Pitcher Felipe Vazquez Receives Prison Sentence for Sexual Assault

Felipe Vazquez just learned his prison sentence for sexual assault. On Tuesday, the former Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher was sentenced to two to four years in a state penitentiary for assaulting a 13-year-old girl in August 2017, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Vazquez received credit for 23 months time served after being arrested in September 2019. He was found guilty of sexual assault in May of this year.

"He's been incarcerated 23 months today," Gary Gerson, Vazquez's attorney, said Tuesday. "Eventually he will be transported to the Department of Corrections processing center in Camp Hill. In one month, [Vazquez] will be at his minimum sentencing eligible for parole, and, of course, he'll have to have a parole hearing and things of that nature. The unknown is what Florida wants to do with his prosecution, and whether they want to do that sooner or later. I don't know."

An investigation was launched in Florida in early 2017 after the girl's mother discovered communication between Vazquez and the girl. Vazquez was found guilty of 15 counts, including statutory sexual assault, corruption of minors and child pornography. He was also found guilty of 10 counts of unlawful contact or communication with a minor during the trial in May. The charges in Missouri and Florida that are connected to him communicating with the same girl are pending.

When Vazquez was arrested, the Pirates released a statement. "Today we were made aware of an active law enforcement investigation involving Felipe Vázquez and his subsequent arrest, the statement said. "We take this matter, and these charges in particular, extremely seriously. We have informed the Commissioner's Office of the investigation and arrest. The Commissioner's Office will immediately place Felipe Vázquez on Administrative Leave (and, as a result, Restricted List) pursuant to the Joint MLB/MLBPA Policy. We need to be respectful to all involved and the ongoing legal proceeding. As a result, the organization, our staff and players cannot comment any further at this time."

Vazquez, 30, was the Pirates' closer and was named to the All-Star team in 2018 and 2019. He started his career with the Washington Nationals and was there for nearly two seasons. Vazquez was traded to the Pirates in 2016 and recorded a 3.29 ERA in 28 games. In five seasons, Vazquez recorded a 17-13 record with 89 saves and a 2.61 ERA.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, you can contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.