The Dodgers will not be without Joe Kelly for 8 games, as they had previously suspected. After the heavy suspension of MLB was handed over, Kelly decided to appeal. It took much longer than expected, but a decision has been made.
Following the appeal on Monday, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has no information yet. He said he expected a decision to be handed down in the coming days. As a result of the hearing, Kelly will only be suspended for 5 games.
Los Kelly Dodgers reliever Joe Kelly, who was suspended for eight games for throwing at Houston Astros fighters, had reduced his ban to five games on appeal, sources told me and @kileymcd.
First was with the successful profession @Jared_Carrabis.
– Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 12, 2020
Kelly was handed the suspension for his part in a bench-removing incident with the Astros. The league cited his past of intentional throwing at hitters as the reason for his longer-than-normal ban. The Dodgers pitcher would rather have sat the equivalent of 22 games in a 162-game season. Here is the original release from MLB about the suspension:
Kelly, who had been suspended earlier in his career for intentional throwing, threw a pitch in the area of Alex Bregman’s head and laughed taunted Carlos Correa, which led to the clearing of the benches.
The Dodgers placed Joe Kelly on the injured list with shoulder inflammation on Monday. He will not be eligible to serve the suspension until he has been activated by the team. So theoretically they could decide which games they want him to miss.
MLB is working on bubble format playoffs with Southern California as a possible hub
