Prosecutor Seeks Reinstatement of Rape Charges Against Former Tiger Pitcher Evan Reed

The Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office is seeking reinstatement of criminal sexual conduct charges against pitcher Evan Reed, who started and ended the 2014 season with the Detroit Tigers and pitched for the Toledo Mud Hens in between.

The appeal is set to be heard at 9 a.m. Friday before Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Michael Callahan, the Detroit Free Press reports.

Reed, 28, of Royal Oak was arraigned in July on two charges of third-degree sexual assault after a months-long investigation into allegations that he drugged a 45-year-old woman at the 5th Avenue Bar in Royal Oak, took her to Motor City Casino Hotel room and raped her the morning of the Tigers’ Opening Day at Comercia Park.

36th District Court Judge Kenneth tossed the charges against Reed in August after finding the complaining witness wasn’t credible and prosecutors failed to show the victim was incapacitated.

It’s not clear if there’s new evidence against Reed, who said in a news conference after the initial charges were announced that he was “blindsided” by the allegations against him. He suggested at the time that the woman at the center of the case was seeking attention by going after a professional athlete.

When he dismissed the charges, King said the victim had “backtracked” and gave “vacillating testimony.”

Reed left the Tigers organization at the end of the 2014 season after pitching 32 games for the MLB team. At the end of the season, the ball club re-assigned him to the Triple-A Mud Hens, and he exercised his free-agent option.

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Photo of Evan Reed by Leon Halip/Getty Images