Yasiel Puig was not technically a member of the Cincinatti Reds when he was shoving Chris Archer Tuesday night. But apparently Major League Baseball doesn’t care about semantics as they have suspended Puig three games for his part in the altercation between his former team and the Pirates mere moments after he was traded to the Indians.
Major League Baseball did not list anything specific that Puig did, at least not publicly, only that he’s being suspended for “aggressive actions.”
Yasiel Puig has received a three-game suspension for “aggressive actions” during the brawl Tuesday night, one that created quite the surreal moment for Antonetti and Chernoff, who happened to turn on the tv in the middle of it. pic.twitter.com/itmlCXk6sV
— Ryan Lewis (@ByRyanLewis) August 1, 2019
Video does show Puig threatening Pirates players (and even his own players), and also shoving Chris Archer at one point, so surely that’s what they are getting at without getting into specifics.
Puig is of course appealing the suspension, which will allow him to make his Indians debut tonight alongside his other new teammate, Franmil Reyes. If this is simply a case of Puig appealing to avoid being suspended for a big game (in this case, his debut against one of the best pitchers in baseball), then he might want to consider dropping it right after tonight’s game.
Following the conclusions of the Astros series tonight, the Indians will face the Angels and Rangers in back-to-back three-game series, then they have a pivotal road matchup against the AL Central-leading Twins. The Indians are going to want him in the lineup for that.