San Diego Padres closer Robert Suarez had his suspension lowered from three games to two for hitting Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, sources told Dennis Lin of The Athletic.
Suarez will reportedly drop his appeal after the ban was reduced. He could also start serving his punishment against the Washington Nationals on Wednesday.
The 34-year-old right-hander was originally punished for throwing at Ohtani's shoulder during a heated game last Thursday that resulted in MLB handing out multiple suspensions and fines. The league said the reliever acted intentionally.
However, Suarez disagreed with that assessment.
"I was just coming in to close out that game," Suarez said Friday through an interpreter. "I was never trying to run into trouble or hit anybody. Unfortunately, it happened, I got ejected and I couldn’t finish out the game."
Padres manager Mike Shildt and Dodgers skipper Dave Roberts were also suspended one game apiece for their roles in the benches-clearing fracas that started when Fernando Tatis Jr. was hit by a pitch.
