No prison for ex-MLB star Wander Franco despite

Wander Franco is guilty of inappropriately abusing a 14-year-old lady in 2023, a decide in the Dominican Republic made clear Monday.

Yet in his next breath, the same decide ruled that the previous Tampa Bay Rays star shortstop won’t be sentenced to prison because he was a sufferer of blackmail and extortion by the lady’s mom.

Celebrity justice in the D.R. will be perplexing, and Judge José Antonio Núñez admitted as a lot. But he also contended that the judicial pardon he granted Franco was the consequence of “logical and legal reasoning.”

“It seems contradictory to declare criminal responsibility and, at the same time, exempt him from punishment,” Núñez said. “The court has granted Wander Franco a judicial pardon due to the particular circumstances that made him a material victim, but not a legal one.”

The court discovered that the lady’s mom extorted 1000’s of {dollars} from Franco. The girl was sentenced to 10 years in prison on expenses of industrial inappropriate exploitation of a minor and money laundering.

The odds are long that Franco will return to Major League Baseball any time soon. The fact that the court discovered him guilty of repeatedly having intercourse with a minor places him squarely in violation of MLB’s Joint Domestic Violence, intimacyual bodily assault and Child Abuse Policy.

The league is in the midst of an investigation into Franco’s conduct.

“We respect the legal process and the decision issued by the court,” the Rays said in a assertion. “This is a serious matter, and our thoughts remain with those affected by the case.

“The Rays will continue to cooperate fully with Major League Baseball as it completes its review under the league’s Joint Domestic Violence, intimacyual physical attack and Child Abuse Policy. Out of respect for the legal process and all parties involved, we will have no further comment at this time.”

Franco’s scenario serves as a cautionary story for MLB groups that hand out long-term contracts years before gamers turn into free brokers. The Rays signed a 20-year-old Franco to an 11-year, $182 million deal in November 2021 after he batted .288 with 30 extra-base hits in 70 video games as a rookie.

Franco appeared on his approach to stardom during a stellar 2023 season, but according to court filings he carried on a relationship with the 14-year-old sufferer for a number of months.

An investigation was launched in August 2023. Franco was arrested Jan. 1, 2024, after failing to seem before Dominican authorities who sought to interview him.

Tampa Bay positioned him on the restricted record early in the 2024 season, voiding his contract.

Franco was discovered guilty in a June 2025 trial. Although prosecutors sought a five-year prison sentence, he was given only a two-year suspended sentence by Justice Jakayra Veras.

“Look at us, Wander,” Veras said in open court. “Do not approach minors for inappropriate purposes. If you don’t like people very close to your age, you have to wait your time.”

An appeals court in December ordered a new trial, which came about Monday and resulted in his pardon.

“Thank God for everything,” Franco said as he embraced his mom, Nancy Aybar, after Judge Nuñez announced the pardon.

As he departed the courthouse, Franco was requested by a reporter how he felt.

“I feel calm,” he said.