Former baseball minor leaguers facing rape charges in Miami

Prosecutors in Miami are expected to formally file charges Monday against two former minor league baseball players accused of rape.

The defendants are Norge Paredes, 24, and Daniel Barbuena, 22, both ex-players with the minor league affiliates of the St. Louis Cardinals. Neither plays for the organization anymore.

According to an arrest report, Barbuena and Paredes were partying last month at a Miami night club called La Ceniza. Barbuena met a woman, who went home with him.

At his North Miami Beach apartment, she asked Paredes to leave. She and Barbuena had sex. Paredes sneaked back in – and with his buddy’s permission – began to have sex with the woman in the dark, according to the report.

When she realized her partner was not Barbuena, she pushed him off and immediately called 911.

A pitcher, Paredes spent three years with the Cardinals organization after signing as a free agent from the Dominican Republic in 2011. Barbuena was an infielder signed from Puerto Rico.

They are both accused of felony sexual battery.

The players could not be reached early Monday. It was unclear if they had attorneys.

This story was originally published March 30, 2015 at 3:00 AM with the headline "Former baseball minor leaguers facing rape charges in Miami."