Rays' Wander Franco has a date for new trial in Dominican Republic

Marc Topkin, Tampa Bay Times on Jan 20, 2026

Published in Baseball

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TAMPA, Fla. — As Rays players gather for the start of spring training next month, Wander Franco will be attending a new trial on charges of sexual abuse of a minor in the Dominican Republic with a Feb. 20 start date, per published reports.

The Rays’ 2023 All-Star shortstop was found guilty in June and given a two-year suspended sentence, which is similar to probation. The charge stemmed from a relationship with a then-14-year-old girl in the Dominican Republic that started in December 2022, when Franco was 21.

The verdict was appealed by both Franco’s lawyers, who questioned the validity of the evidence, and prosecutors, who wanted a stiffer sentence of five years in prison.

In December, an appeals court voided the June verdict and ordered a new trial. Both sides at the time said they were confident they would prevail in the new trial.

Franco, 24, has not played since August 2023 when word of the relationship first surfaced on social media. He has not been paid since charges were filed in July 2024, but the Rays still owe him $164 million as part of the $182 million, 11-year contract he signed in November 2021.

The conviction jeopardized his chance to return to the major leagues given the crime is one of moral turpitude, which legal experts said made it unlikely he would be granted a visa for the United States.

Franco also could face discipline by MLB once the legal process is resolved.

The appeals court also annulled a guilty verdict against the girl’s mother, Martha Vanessa Chevalier, who had been sentenced to 10 years in prison for sexual exploitation and money laundering. She also will have a new trial starting then, per the Diario Libre newspaper.

The new trial will again be held in Puerta Plata court, but with a different three-judge panel, per reports.