Red's Pitcher Mike Leake aka The Thief

Mike Leake

So yesterday afternoon Mike Leake was arrested at a downtown Cincinnati's Macy's store for stealing $60 worth of shirts, six shirts at $10 a pop.  He was caught on security cameras removing the security tags, and walking out of the store without paying for the merchandise.  Why there was even a security tag on a $10 shirt I have no idea, maybe this is why he stole them, thinking something fishy was going on and that these shirts were worth a lot more than what the price tag suggested.

Leake's Mug Shot

This is a complete embarrassment for Leake and the Reds.  Leake makes $425,000 a year, and received a $2.3 million signing bonus when the Reds drafted him.  So why would someone with that type of money make such a dumb decision?  Here are some possible explanations that I have come up with:  

1. Leake is actually broke.  He has spent all of his money living the Charlie Sheen lifestyle in his short time in the major leagues.  Drugs, women, & a shady social circle has led him to this.  Charlie Sheen is a big Reds fan by the way, coincidence?   Probably not.

2.  Tiger Blood DNA - Leake, like many other athletes and celebrities might suffer from the belief that he is above everyone else and the rules of society do not apply to him.  When caught doing things like this, he should be allowed to just sign a couple of autographs and everything is good.  He is above the law and can do what he wants, when he wants.

3.  Leake is a Kleptomaniac- The definition of kleptomania is a strong impulse to steal, especially when there is no obvious motivation.  What better example of this than Mike Leake!  They need to add his picture next to this definition in the dictionary.  No matter how hard you look and look, there is no reasonable motivation for him to steal shirts from Macy's, other than the fact that he just gets some type of satisfaction from shop lifting.  So Cincinnati business owners beware, Sticky Fingers Leake could be coming to a location near you.

4.  It was all a big misunderstanding.  Many of the Reds faithful are putting their blindfolds on, and covering their ears, waiting for the Reds and Leake to come out with the explanation that this was all just a mistake.  Leake probably was only removing the tags while he was thinking about it so that he would not be embarrassed in the clubhouse later when N.L. MVP Joey Votto pointed out that not only was Leake wearing an awful looking cheap shirt, but even worst that it still had the security tag on it.  Then after removing the tags, Leake who was in deep thought about strategies for his next pitching start, walked out without paying.  It slipped his mind because he is such a dedicated player that his thinking about making the perfect pitch 24/7.  Don't worry Reds fans, you know Leake is innocent and soon enough it will be proven!  And Leake will be filing a law suit against Macy's for entrapment and public defamation of character.

All kidding aside this cannot come at a worst time for the Reds pitching staff who has struggled so far this year, and Leake will more than likely miss several starts over this, leaving the Reds even more shorthanded while they wait for Cueto and Bailey to finish their rehab assignments.  Oh, and I hear the Bengals are looking for a new QB and Leake would fit in great with the Bengals crew, so maybe he should test out that strong arm in the NFL.