Former No. 1 overall MLB Draft pick Matt Bush was arrested after allegedly attempting to flee the scene of a multi-vehicle crash while drunk.

Bush, 38, was charged with one count of driving while intoxicated, one count of accident involving injury and one count of evading last Friday (October 4), according to Arlington Police Department public records. Arlington Police officers initially noticed that the former MLB pitcher was driving his 2023 Lincoln Aviator erratically and attempted to pull him over, however, he managed to speed away, prompting a "Be On the Lookout" report.

The Department then received a report of a multi-vehicle accident that took place at a nearby intersection and found the same Lincoln Aviator at the scene. Bush allegedly ran a red light at the intersection and hit a 2023 Chevrolet Silverado before smashing into a 2010 GMC Yukon and 2008 Toyota Corolla.

Police said Bush “fled from that crash on foot without identifying himself or exchanging any information” before being chased down, stopped and held down by a group of bystanders before officers intervened. Bush and the 41-year-old driver of the Silverado were both taken to a hospital for minor injuries sustained while the drivers of the Yukon and Corolla were uninjured, according to Arlington Police.

Bush was suspected to be intoxicated during the incident, declining a field sobriety test and refusing to speak with investigators about the incident before a warrant for a blood sample was obtained. The former pitcher was booked into the Arlington City Jail on a $35,000 after being medically cleared.

Bush was selected by the San Diego Padres at No. 1 overall in the 2004 MLB Draft, originally as a shortstop, and arrested for several alcohol-related incidents during his minor league career with multiple organizations. The San Diego native previously pleaded no contest to charges of DUI and leaving the scene in an incident that seriously injured a 72-year-old man on a motorcycle.

Bush signed a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers upon his prison release in 2015 and appeared in 180 MLB games for the franchise, which included a 12-7 record and 3.34 ERA. The right-hander was signed and released by the Rangers four times between 2015 to 2022 before being traded to the Milwaukee Brewers, with whom he spent the 2022 and 2023 seasons, appearing in 37 games.

Bush was released by the Brewers midway through the 2023 season and re-signed with the eventual World Series champion Rangers in July 2023, however, never made another MLB appearance and was released at the end of the season.

Cristina Mendonsa