Alden Gonzalez, ESPN Staff Writer Oct. 21, 2023, 6:17 p.m. ET
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- ESPN baseball reporter. He covered the LA Rams for ESPN from 2016 to 2018 and the LA Angels for MLB.com from 2012 to 2016.
HOUSTON – Houston Astros reliever Bryan Abreu has been suspended for two games after hitting Texas Rangers outfielder Adolis Garcia with a controversial hit that led to a bench-clearing incident late in the game and a A near-brawl had resulted in 5 of the American League Championship Series on Friday night.
Major League Baseball noted in its press release that “all six Major League umpires viewed Abreu’s pitch as an intentional throw” when they ejected him from the game, adding that the league “recognized the dangerousness of the pitch and its potential “taken into account the effects”. on the safety of the players” when imposing the ban.
The announcement – made by MLB Senior Vice President of On Field Operations Michael Hill – claimed that Abreu was suspended for “intentionally throwing” at Garcia, a claim that several members of the Astros disputed after Houston’s come-from-behind victory in the game 5, including Abreu himself.
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“My plan for him was just to try to get the ball up and in,” Abreu said after the game. “That’s my plan for him – up and in and down and away. I just missed the pitch and he just overreacted.”
Abreu, the Astros’ primary setup man, would not be available for Game 6 of the ALCS and neither Game 7 of that series nor Game 1 of the World Series; The Astros hold a 3-2 lead over the Rangers after winning all three games in Arlington, Texas. If Abreu decides to appeal, disciplinary action would be stayed pending the proceedings.
The collective bargaining agreement requires hearings related to a playoff suspension to be heard within 48 hours of a player’s decision to appeal. In that case, Abreu could wait until before Game 6 to declare he wants to appeal, and then theoretically be available in Game 6 and possibly Game 7 while the process plays out. In this case, however, he could be unavailable for the start of the World Series if the Astros advance and his suspension is upheld.
Abreu was also fined an undisclosed amount, as were Garcia, Rangers pitcher Matt Bush, Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. and manager Dusty Baker. Garcia and Baker were also ejected from Friday’s game but were not suspended. McCullers and Bush will no longer be allowed to sit on their respective benches for the remainder of the ALCS, the MLB announced.
Abreu’s hit came in the bottom of the eighth, two innings after Garcia hit a dramatic three-run home run and celebrated emphatically by running halfway up the first base line and slamming his bat onto the turf at Globe Life Field before he started jogging. The pitch hit occurred with a runner on first, no one out and the Rangers still leading by two runs, on a first-pitch fastball that hit 99 mph and hit Garcia in the left arm. Garcia immediately turned to Astros catcher Martin Maldonado and then went looking for him again after players from both teams got onto the field.
A similar incident occurred at Minute Maid Park in Houston in late July following a grand slam by Garcia. Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien, who had been hit by a pitch early in the game, swore at Maldonado as he reached home plate. Then Garcia joined. The dugouts and benches were also emptied, but no blows were thrown.
No hits were thrown Friday either, but Baker, who watched Jose Altuve’s game-winning home run from the hallway connected to the dugout, said there will “probably” be a carryover for the rest of this series.
How come?
“Man, I don’t know,” Baker said before Saturday’s practice in Houston. “I don’t have a crystal ball. I mean, it will be what it will be. You’ll have to wait and see, just like me. We don’t write a script; it just happens.”