Mariners' Milton Bradley arrested on suspicion of making threat against woman

A former major-league general manager said Tuesday night there would have to be specific language in Milton Bradley's contract for his arrest on suspicion of making a felony threat to alter his deal.

Bradley was arrested Tuesday morning in Southern California after allegedly making a criminal threat against an unidentified woman. He was released on $50,000 bail late Tuesday afternoon and will have to appear in court on Feb. 8.

The Mariners owe Bradley $12 million this season, even though he is not expected to land a starting job in either left field or at designated hitter. That is for the final season of a three-year, $30 million contract Bradley signed with the Chicago Cubs before being traded to Seattle 13 months ago.

The former GM, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the language needed to convert contracts from "guaranteed" to "non-guaranteed" is very specific.

"It depends on the guarantee language," he said. "If the guarantee language includes a felony conviction, it allows the contract to be converted to a non-guaranteed form if that player is convicted of a felony."

The Mariners, citing club policy, declined to comment on Bradley's contract status.

Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik, in a release from the team Tuesday night, said he'd reached Bradley's representatives and confirmed his arrest and release on bail.

"While we do not yet have full details on what occurred, we are aware of the situation and take it very seriously," Zduriencik said. "We are in the process of determining the full circumstances of what occurred. Until we have more information, we will not be able to comment further."

Officer Karen Rayner of the Los Angeles Police Department said police were called to a location in the Van Nuys district about 8:50 a.m. where they met with a woman. Rayner, citing department protocol, said the identity of the victim and her relationship to Bradley cannot be released, but that she told police there "had been some type of threat."

About two hours later, at 10:40 a.m., Bradley, 32, was arrested at an address in the 5300 block of Oak Park Avenue in Encino and booked on a felony violation of California Penal Code Sec. 422. Documents show Bradley owns a home on that block.

The penal code section refers to someone "who willfully threatens to commit a crime which will result in death or great bodily injury to another person" and for the victim of the crime to take it seriously.

Bradley was placed on baseball's restricted list by the Mariners for two weeks in May and given psychological counseling after he left the stadium during a game. He had been removed from the game by manager Don Wakamatsu, who felt Bradley was putting too much pressure on himself.

It's not known whether the Mariners attempted to alter Bradley's contract, or introduce language involving criminal or detrimental behavior, as a condition of getting him psychological counseling. Bradley is expected to be squeezed for playing time.

Notes

• The Mariners wrapped up negotiations with their remaining arbitration-eligible players, signing David Aardsma to a one-year, $4.5 million deal that includes up to $325,000 in incentives that begin once he finishes off 35 games and continue to be paid out up to 55 games. The Associated Press reported that pitcher Jason Vargas signed for one year, $2.45 million, while reliever Brandon League settled for one year, $2.25 million.

• Mike Hargrove, former Mariners manager, has been hired by Cleveland as a special adviser. A former player, coach and manager in Cleveland, Hargrove will handle a variety of roles.