"On Tuesday, it appeared the Indians pitcher formerly known as Fausto Carmona was a step closer to joining his team in the United States. The movement may have been premature.

William Weissman, consul general for the U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic, was quoted by Dominican Today as saying that the U.S. could pardon Dominican baseball players caught using a false identity.

"I cannot speak of a particular case because each case is different, but in the case of the ballplayers, they could be pardoned," Weissman was quoted as saying at a gathering of the Dominican Development Alliance.

In a series of Tweets after the story appeared, the U.S. Consulate said that wasn't the case. It said the main point Weissman was trying to make was that all cases are dealt with individually and that the consequences of fraud include ineligibility to enter the United States for life.

They said no specifics of individual cases were discussed because all visa records are confidential.

Carmona and fellow pitcher Leo Nunez of the Miami Marlins are cooperating with the U.S government, but it's still unknown if and when they'll be able to get a visa to enter the U.S. after being apprehended for using false identifications in the Dominican Republic. They are on the restricted list and won't be paid until they enter the U.S. "