Washington Nationals manager Davey Martinez and pitcher Jorge López were suspended by MLB after the team intentionally threw at Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen, the league announced Thursday.
Martinez received a one-game suspension from the league. López was suspended for three games after the incident, which occurred in the seventh inning of Wednesday’s contest. With two outs and a man already on base, Lopez hit Pirates outfielder Bryan Reynolds with a pitch. McCutchen came to the plate next, and had to duck out of the way of a 92 mph fastball that nearly hit him in the head. Pirates manager Derek Shelton came out of the dugout to talk to umpires. As that was happening, benches cleared. No punches were thrown but López was ejected from the game.
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MLB reviewed the incident, and determined López and Martinez should be suspended for “intentionally throwing” at McCutchen. López and Martinez were also fined for the incident.
Eduardo Salazar came on in relief of López and issued a walk to McCutchen. The next batter, Oneil Cruz, belted a grand slam on the first pitch he saw, giving the Pirates both the 6-1 win and the last laugh.
Following the contest, López denied intentionally trying to hit McCutchen with a pitch. López — who had a 6.43 ERA in seven innings before Wednesday’s game — said he’s struggled with his command all season. López added that he felt “miserable” that McCutchen was nearly hit in the head. López’s ERA ballooned to 10.57 after he was charged with three runs as a result of Salazar giving up the grand slam.
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López appealed the suspension and will remain available to pitch until his appeal is heard. MLB managers cannot appeal suspensions, so Martinez will serve his one-game absence Thursday, per MASN.
MLB may have felt compelled to take action after Nationals shortstop Paul DeJong sustained a broken nose after being hit in the face with a pitch in Tuesday’s game. The league may have interpreted López actions as possible retaliation for DeJong’s injury.
Both the Nationals and Pirates have struggled to open the season. The Nationals sit at 7-11 following Wednesday’s loss. The Pirates improved to 7-12 with the win, and are hoping the team’s response to Wednesday’s incident will be the beginning of a winning streak.
