Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Ian Kennedy dropped the appeal of his 10-game suspension and began serving his time on the sidelines Monday night, reports Steve Gilbert of MLB.com.
Diamondbacks RHP Ian Kennedy drops suspension appeal
The Arizona right-hander has begun serving his 10-game punishment for beaning Zack Greinke and Yasiel Puig.
Stephen Dunn
More D'Backs: Hitting the Skids
Kennedy, 28, received his suspension for beaning Dodgers starter Zack Greinke in the left shoulder at Chavez Ravine last week, as well as for his part in the ensuing benches-clearing brawl. Both teams had already been warned by the home-plate umpire when Kennedy hit Greinke, so his immediate ejection and subsequent suspension were not a surprise.
What 10 Games Means
Baseball lets precedent be its guide, and right or wrong, that guide dictates leniency. The right-hander likely opened an appeal into the suspension so that he could make his start Sunday evening, delaying his time on the sidelines just enough to make it more manageable for the D’Backs. With two off days in the coming week, Arizona can probably get by with a four-man rotation for all of Kennedy’s time out (i.e. two starts).
Randall Delgado will be called up from Triple-A to start on Tuesday, but his promotion is a result of Brandon McCarthy's lingering shoulder and neural issues, not Kennedy's suspension. Kennedy is eligible to return to the D'Backs' rotation on June 29, which would pit him against the Braves in Atlanta.
Kennedy is allowed to suit up with the team for batting practice during his suspension, but he must flee to the clubhouse when the game begins.
More from SB Nation:
See More:
