White Sox pitcher Wright suspended 3 games for intentionally hitting Ohtani

Chicago White Sox pitcher Mike Wright has been suspended three games and fined an undisclosed amount for intentionally hitting Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani earlier this week, Major League Baseball announced Saturday.

Wright is appealing the ban and will be available until his case is heard.

Additionally, White Sox manager Tony La Russa was handed an automatic one-game suspension and a fine. La Russa will serve his suspension on Saturday.

Wright hit Ohtani in the ninth inning of Thursday's game at Guaranteed Rate Field, and umpires immediately tossed the right-hander after deeming it intentional. Officials also booted La Russa after he argued the decision.

The Hall of Fame skipper was upset postgame, saying Wright did not intentionally target the two-way superstar and that the umps made "a mistake." Angels skipper Joe Maddon disputed this and thought Chicago may have retaliated for his pitchers hitting Luis Robert and Jose Abreu earlier in the series.

La Russa, who believed the umpires applied a double standard, continued to sound off about the situation on Saturday.

"I didn't see the scrutiny being even," La Russa said before the White Sox faced Texas without him, according to NBC Sports Chicago's Maddie Lee.

"Because it was that one pitch, we had plenty of opportunities to be upset, and we were just pitching him the same way we pitched him the whole time," the coach added. "But our guys, three guys get hit, one guy gets hit in the head, Abreu gets hit for the 19th time (this year), and nobody pays attention to that. There's an unfairness there that upsets me."

Wright, 31, has appeared in nine contests for Chicago this season.