The son of seven-time Cy Young winner Roger Clemens was allegedly assaulted by a bouncer at a Houston bar while ringing in the new year and is now suing for damages.
Kacy Clemens, a first baseman in the Blue Jays organization, and his friend are named as the plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed Wednesday, according to the Houston Chronicle. The suit alleges both men -- Clemens, 24, and fellow baseball prospect Conner Capel, 21 -- were physically assaulted by an employee of the Concrete Cowboy bar in the early morning hours of Jan. 1 as they partied inside the establishment.
According to the lawsuit, a bouncer at the bar asked the men to move to a different part of the bar, and they apparently complied. However, things managed to escalate and the bouncer decided to kick them out of the bar and at some point while they were being escorted outside, the alleged assault took place.
Several other bouncers and staffers apparently got involved during the assault and Capel was allegedly struck with a flashlight several times, leading to various injuries -- including a fractured skull. Clemens and Capel included photos of their injuries with the lawsuit.
Kacy Clemens and Conner Capel are suing a Houston bar after they say a bouncer assaulted them on New Year's Eve. https://t.co/yNRwTpEKL8 via @houstonchron
— Matt Young (@Chron_MattYoung) January 30, 2019
The lawsuit is seeking "over $200,000" in monetary relief for damages, according to an ABC News report.
Police were called by onlookers and the bouncer was arrested on a misdemeanor assault charge. (It's unknown whether he's still employed by the Concrete Cowboy.) Police found no evidence that Clemens or Capel were intoxicated at the time the incident occurred. The New York Post reported that Roger Clemens showed up to the scene shortly after hearing about the incident.
Attorneys for Clemens and Capel told the Chronicle that this incident is part of a trend and highlights a pattern of behavior with the "violent" bouncers at the bar. The suit includes several examples of negative Yelp! reviews regarding the bouncers and their aggressive behavior towards patrons.
Both Clemens and Capel are minor league baseball players and, as noted in the lawsuit, they have expressed concern that the injuries sustained in the altercation could affect their baseball careers.
Clemens was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the eighth round of the 2017 MLB Draft and spent last season playing for the organization's Single-A and High-A affiliates. Capel, an outfielder, was fifth-round pick of the Cleveland Indians in 2016 before being traded to the St. Louis Cardinals. He spent last season playing for the High-A Palm Beach Cardinals.
