Alexis Blackburn, an ex-girlfriend of Sam Dyson, has filed a civil lawsuit against the veteran reliever, accusing him of sexual battery, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress from incidents that spanned the course of several years.
Dyson spent parts of three of his eight seasons with the San Francisco Giants — most recently in 2019. He appeared in 161 games for SF between 2017 and 2019.
The Athletic was the first to report the civil suit. Dyson hasn’t pitched since 2019, as he was suspended by MLB for the 2021 season for violating the league’s domestic violence policy. That investigation began in 2019 after allegations of abuse from Blackburn.
Robert Buschel, an attorney for Blackburn, released a statement to The Athletic explaining Blackburn’s decision to file suit:
Mr. Dyson has not accepted responsibility for his behavior, thus he has forced this matter to be tried and proven in front of a jury. We have no doubt that the findings of the jury will be identical to that of Major League Baseball and that Mr. Dyson will be held to account for his violent actions against Ms. Blackburn.
Alexis Blackburn hopes this lawsuit will help all women who are in an abusive relationship. She hopes it provides the freedom to escape abusive relationships and calls on all professional sports’ leagues take notice and to take quantum steps to eliminate the acceptance of domestic violence and sexual violence in sports.
Blackburn first accused Dyson of abuse in November of 2019 — a few months after San Francisco traded the pitcher to the Twins — and later detailed her allegations to The Athletic in October of 2020. They include an incident when she said Dyson took his anger out on her cat by kicking a box in which it was in. She also alleged Dyson asserted control over her in several ways, including preventing her from pursuing a job in the service industry; a common warning sign of abusive behavior.
When local police investigated Blackburn’s allegations, she provided photos of her bruised arms, and Dyson admitted they had a “verbally violent and toxic relationship.”
If you or someone you know needs help dealing with domestic violence, The National Domestic Violence Hotline is accessible by calling Call 1.800.799.SAFE (7233)or by visiting the website at thehotline.org.