Prospect Yasiel Puig arrested on speeding, reckless driving charges

Dodgers prospect Yasiel Puig was arrested by police in Chattanooga, Tenn., early Sunday and charged with speeding, reckless driving and driving without proof of insurance.

A spokesman for the Hamilton County jail confirmed that Puig was booked Sunday morning and released a short time later. He has a hearing scheduled for the afternoon of May 14 in Hamilton County court.

Puig, a 22-year-old Cuban defector, signed a seven-year, $42-million contract with the Dodgers last June.

An impressive spring -- during which he hit .517, homered three times and drove in 11 runs in 27 games -- had him in the running for a spot on the opening day roster. But Puig was eventually sent to the Dodgers’ double-A affiliate in Chattanooga, where he was batting .333 with three homers and nine RBIs when he went on the disabled list with a sprained left thumb eight days ago.

The Dodgers, concerned about Puig’s maturity and the difficulty of his transition to professional baseball, assigned former major league pitcher Eddie Oropesa to serve as an interpreter and mentor to Puig during the spring.

”We’re aware of it,” Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti said. “We take it seriously. We’ll be handling discipline internally.”