Breaking: Chris Perez investigated for drug possession

Indians closer Chris Perez was arrested last night in Rocky River, a western suburb of Cleveland. (UPDATE (11:25 a.m.): it is now being termed as an "investigation," not an arrest) There are few details at the moment, Perez's lawyer has not yet responded to reporters' attempts to seek comment, but the drugs are believed to be recreational in nature, not performance enhancing. Perez is currently on the 15-day DL with soreness in his right (throwing) shoulder.

UPDATE (11:39 a.m.): The word right now is that Perez had a large amount of marijuana delivered to his home, perhaps a pound or more. Penalties in Ohio for one pound of marijuana include a fine of up to $2,500 and/or up to one year in jail. (Thanks to reader PaduaDSP for that link.) I'm hard pressed to believe Perez will see time over this, given his status and lack of prior convictions, but this is more serious than a player being caught with a joint.

Indians GM Chris Antonetti issued the following statement:

Earlier this morning we were made aware of a situation involving Chris Perez that occurred yesterday in Rocky River. We have talked with Chris and are currently in the process of gathering additional information.

In addition to potential legal penalties, MLB players can be suspended for using a "drug of abuse" (a category that includes marijuana), the same as they can for performance enhancing drugs, so depending on what happened and what is found, Perez could be on his way to a much lengthier absence.

This story will be updated as more details are released.