Jays coach gets lengthy ban
TORONTO • Toronto Blue Jays hitting coach Brook Jacoby has been slapped with a 14-game suspension — much longer than a pitcher typically receives for throwing at a batter’s head — after a clash with umpires in a narrow Fenway Park tunnel after a game last Wednesday night.
The Jays have appealed the suspension and issued a release saying they would have no comment until the appeal is heard. Major League Baseball rules bar club management from commenting on suspensions.
Unlike a suspended player, a suspended coach cannot continue his in-game duties, pending an appeal. Jacoby’s suspension began Monday night. He can work with players before and after games.
In Boston’s Fenway Park, umpires have long exited the field after a game via the tunnel from the visitors’ dugout to the clubhouse. After Wednesday’s incident, MLB changed the rules, requiring umpires to leave first, according to a report from Sportsnet’s Jeff Blair.
The incident, first reported in vague fashion by veteran baseball writer Peter Gammons on Twitter late last week, erupted when the Jays and the umpiring crew entered the tunnel after Russell Martin was called out on strikes by Adrian Johnson to end Toronto’s 4-1 loss.
Although details are sketchy, sources say Jacoby and the umpires exchanged sharp, profane words. The tunnel is barely wide enough for two people to stand side by side.
Major League Baseball announced Jacoby’s unpaid suspension in a release Monday evening. The release gave no details, stating only that the suspension related to Jacoby’s “post-game conduct toward the umpire crew.” The suspension was handed down by Joe Torre, MLB’s chief baseball officer.
The suspension is unusually long. Last September, Jays’ pitcher Marcus Stroman was suspended for six games — later reduced to five — for throwing at Baltimore catcher Caleb Joseph.
Kansas City pitcher Yordano Ventura is currently serving a seven-game suspension for his part in inciting a benchclearing brawl. Royals’ pitcher Edinson Volquez received a five-game suspension for his part in the same incident.