Bartolo Colon’s secret family became public in May 2016, when a sealed Manhattan child support lawsuit revealed that the longtime major league pitcher, then married for 21 years to his wife Rosanna, had fathered two children with a woman named Alexandra Santos. The case settled about a month later under a confidentiality agreement, and Colon never publicly acknowledged the children.1New York Post. Bartolo Colon’s Double Life With Secret Family
How the Second Family Became Public
The New York Post broke the story on May 18, 2016, describing what it called Colon’s “double life.”1New York Post. Bartolo Colon’s Double Life With Secret Family The underlying lawsuit was not new. Santos had filed it in Manhattan Supreme Court roughly a year earlier, in mid-2015, and the case was captioned “Anonymous v. Anonymous” with the records sealed.
What exposed Colon was his own paperwork. He briefly represented himself in the proceedings, and because he appeared as his own attorney, his name showed up on public court filings and defeated the anonymity the sealed caption was meant to protect.2ESPN. Bartolo Colon Sued for Child Support
Who Alexandra Santos Is
Santos was 38 and living in Washington Heights in upper Manhattan when the story broke. She alleged that Colon was the father of her two children: a son who was eight and a daughter who was seven.3Los Angeles Times. Bartolo Colon Child Support
According to the Post, Santos and Colon met when she waited on him at a restaurant during what was described as a rough patch in his marriage. Santos reportedly told her building superintendent that she had lived with Colon before moving to her apartment about three years earlier. Even after Colon reconciled with Rosanna, he was said to have continued visiting Santos and the children, providing financial support along with gifts such as an iPad, a phone, and clothing, often sent through his driver. The children reportedly attended Mets games and visited the New Jersey home Colon shared with Rosanna and their four sons.4New York Post. Bartolo Colon Couldn’t Resist This Sexy Side Dish
The Lawsuit and Settlement
Santos’s complaint alleged that Colon was a “deadbeat dad who failed to pay child support” for the two children.1New York Post. Bartolo Colon’s Double Life With Secret Family Her attorney, Evan Schein, framed the dispute around the lifestyle the children would have had if their parents had stayed together, telling reporters that Colon “obviously is a very talented baseball player and he earns a significant income.”2ESPN. Bartolo Colon Sued for Child Support
The financial context mattered. Colon was earning $7.25 million for the 2016 season alone, and his career earnings over 19 major league seasons at that point exceeded $101 million.2ESPN. Bartolo Colon Sued for Child Support An associate of Colon disputed the “deadbeat” characterization, telling the New York Daily News that the pitcher “never missed a payment.”5New York Daily News. Bartolo Colon Hasn’t Failed to Support His Two Secret Love Children, Associate Says The fight appeared to be over how much support was appropriate given his income, not whether any had been paid.
The case moved slowly. Both sides signed a confidentiality agreement in April 2016, and the proceedings were delayed at one point by the promotion of the presiding judge.1New York Post. Bartolo Colon’s Double Life With Secret Family The matter came before Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Deborah Kaplan. In mid-June 2016 Colon missed a scheduled court appearance, and lawyers said the parties were “close to an amicable settlement.”6New York Daily News. Bartolo Colon Blows Off Court Date to Reach Settlement With Ex-Fling Over Their Two Love Children On June 17, 2016, Colon and Santos reached an agreement whose terms both parties are barred from discussing publicly.7SABR. Bartolo Colon
What Rosanna Colon and Bartolo Said
Rosanna Colon, whom Bartolo met in the Dominican Republic when he was 13, confirmed to the Post that she was aware of her husband’s second family and the pending lawsuit. The couple had been married for 21 years and had four sons. Rosanna declined to say more, telling a reporter in Spanish, “I can’t talk about that. This is personal and not something I want to talk about.”3Los Angeles Times. Bartolo Colon Child Support
Colon, then pitching for the New York Mets, said little. After a game on May 18, 2016, he told reporters, “When I’m here doing my job, nothing else affects me. I have nothing to add to that. I don’t care to talk about my personal stuff.”2ESPN. Bartolo Colon Sued for Child Support He never publicly acknowledged the two children.
The Fallout
The revelation clashed with the image Colon had built as a 42-year-old workhorse and fan favorite. ESPN wrote that the story was “at odds with his on-field image” as a lovable player and dutiful family man, but noted that within about a week it had “all but died.”8ESPN. The Nine Lives of Mets Pitcher Bartolo Colon It was not his first off-field controversy. In August 2012, while with the Oakland Athletics, Colon was suspended for 50 games without pay after testing positive for synthetic testosterone in violation of MLB’s drug policy.9ESPN. Bartolo Colon Suspended 50 Games He kept pitching in the majors until September 2018.