Former Brave Otis Nixon has been found ‘safe’

Otis Nixon had been reported missing since Saturday. (Credit: Woodstock Police Department)

Otis Nixon had been reported missing since Saturday. (Credit: Woodstock Police Department)

Woodstock Police have located Otis Nixon, a former Atlanta Braves player reported missing since Saturday.

Detectives pursued leads and tips Monday morning after Nixon, 58, was reported missing by his girlfriend after he did not show up for a Saturday morning tee time at a local golf course.

Nixon had last been seen leaving his home at 10 a.m. Saturday in a gray 2011 Range Rover.

Police alerted to discovering Nixon “safe” via Twitter Monday afternoon.

Woodstock police spokeswoman Brittany Duncan did not have information on how or where he was found, but confirmed that he was O.K.

“At this time, our part is closed,” she said. “He’s been located, so our case is closed.”

Nixon first came to the Braves in a trade with Montreal only days before spring training ended in 1991 — at age 32 — and helped spark the team's worst-to-first season. He stole a franchise record 72 bases that season, but was suspended for 60 days after failing a drug test. He missed the team's trip to the World Series.

He entered Braves lore with game-saving heroics, known forever as "The Catch" in a 1992 game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

He played in 17 major league seasons for nine teams, most notably four years with the Braves. He had 1,379 hits and 620 stolen bases in his career, before retiring at age 40 with the Braves in 1999.

His drug problems were highly publicized throughout his baseball career.

In 2015, Nixon was arrested on charges of “contributing to the delinquency of a minor” and “permitting an unlicensed person to drive.”

Two years earlier, he was arrested after being found with a crack pipe and crack rock during a traffic stop.

April 1, 1991: Traded Keith Morrison (minors) and Jimmy Kremers to the Montreal Expos in exchange for Boi Rodriguez (minors) and Otis Nixon (above).

icon to expand image

In other news: 

Time lapse: SunTrust Park opens its gates