Boston Red Sox Jonathan Papelbon suspended and fined - MLB News
Tuesday night, the Boston Red Sox saw two of their players get ejected from the field, but one of them, Boston’s closer Jonathan Papelbon, after being ejected was suspended for duration of three games and fined as well. The umpire responsible for ejecting
him was Tony Randazzo who was umpiring at the plate.
Papelbon’s ejection came in the ninth inning of the match against the Oakland Athletics where he was unhappy over calls by Randazzo. After Conor Jackson of the Athletics belted out a two run single, Papelbon said something to the plate umpire. As a result,
the umpire replied which triggered Papelbon to bump him with his chest. This led to an ejection after an argument.
Even before the Major League Baseball authorities announced their ban on Papelbon, he had anticipated that there would be consequences. He expressed his opinion by saying, "It's me, and you know I don't get away with anything. I've been fined for being three
seconds late (between pitches)."
Countless replays of the incident can lead one to easily deduce that Papelbon was at fault after his emotions got the best of him and he bumped the umpire which is a big no-no in baseball, along with many other sports. Boston’s catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia
along with their manager Terry Francona attempted to hold back Papelbon and stop him from doing something which could’ve lead to an even stricter punishment. They managed to subdue Papelbon and prevent any further penalties or fines that he might have incurred
due to outburst against the umpire.
In a statement released by the MLB it was conveyed that Papelbon was being banned for the inappropriateness of his actions which among others, included contact with the umpire at the home plate. The suspension that was to take effect from Tuesday, the day
Boston goes against their historical arch rivals, the New York Yankees, is being appealed by Papelbon. He notched his career’s 200th career save on Tuesday becoming the fastest pitcher in all of MLB history to do so, when the Red Sox successfully
defeated the Yankees 6-4.
When asked after the game whether he had intentionally planned to make physical contact with the umpire, Papelbon replied with a precise statement and said, “It wasn’t on purpose.”
Papelbon has managed to save 11 out of the 12 opportunities present to him but his 4.32 ERA isn’t very impressive. The player who has four All-Star selections to his name has a 1.98 FIP this season. The batters that go up against him are getting a bit too
lucky for Papelbon’s liking as he barely manages a .369 BABIP.
Although he has been fined as well, the exact amount remains undisclosed.
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