President Donald Trump issued a pardon Friday to former Major League Baseball star Darryl Strawberry for his 1995 federal tax evasion conviction.
The White House confirmed the decision, which the retired slugger immediately celebrated on social media.
Strawberry pleaded guilty nearly three decades ago to one felony count of failing to report approximately $350,000 in income from autograph signings and personal appearances.
He subsequently paid back the taxes owed to the federal government.
The pardon addresses only Strawberry’s federal tax conviction from 1995.
Presidential clemency applies exclusively to federal offenses under the Constitution, not state-level convictions. Following his guilty plea, Strawberry received probation and was ordered to repay $350,000 to the Internal Revenue Service.
He later served 11 months in a Florida state prison after violating probation on drug-related charges, according to the Associated Press.
Those drug-related matters were prosecuted at the state level in Florida. Since the Constitution limits presidential pardons to “offences against the United States,” Trump’s pardon does not affect any state convictions Strawberry may have received, per the Daily Caller.
A White House official speaking to the AP cited Strawberry’s religious conversion to Christianity, sustained sobriety and ministry work as factors in the president’s decision to grant clemency.
Strawberry expressed gratitude on Instagram following the announcement.
“Thank you, President @realdonaldtrump for my full pardon and for finalizing this part of my life, allowing me to be truly free and clean from all of my past,” he wrote.
The former outfielder also shared details about receiving a phone call from Trump informing him of the pardon.
Strawberry stated the experience “deepened my faith and commitment” to his Christian ministry work.
Strawberry enjoyed a distinguished 17-year career in Major League Baseball.
He played for the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants during his time in the league.
The National League named Strawberry Rookie of the Year in 1983. He went on to earn eight All-Star selections throughout his career.
Strawberry won four World Series championships during his playing days. He captured titles with both New York franchises during the peak years of his career.
The tax case originated from unreported cash payments Strawberry received from memorabilia shows and other personal appearances in the mid-1990s.
SFGATE reported on the case when charges were filed in 1995.
Trump made headlines this week for granting full pardons to former Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada and his former chief of staff, Cade Cothren, both previously convicted on federal corruption charges.
The White House framed the decision as correcting what it described as “significant over-prosecution” by the Biden Justice Department (DOJ) for a relatively minor issue.
Trump made waves late last month after pardoning the controversial founder of Binance Changpeng Zhao, better known as CZ.
CZ served four months in prison after pleading guilty to money-laundering violations.
“I love President Trump; this is possibly the greatest admin of my lifetime—except for these pardons,” billionaire venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale said at the time.
