Major League Baseball has upheld Bryan Abreu's two-game suspension, but he will not begin serving it until the start of the 2024 season, the league announced Monday.
Abreu was suspended for throwing at Rangers right fielder Adolís Garcia in the eighth inning of the Astros' Game 5 win. He appealed the suspension prior to Game 6 and the appeal was heard Tuesday.
"That was kind of what I was hoping for when I didn't use him in a down game two innings yesterday," Astros manager Dusty Baker said. "He told me he was prepared to throw as many as possible just in case he had to serve a suspension. So it's a blessing to have him for today."
Initially, the Astros said that there was no way Abreu would intentionally hit Garcia to put a runner in scoring position in a game Texas was leading 4-2 in the eighth, as Rangers outfielder Evan Carter was on first base.
In Ken Rosenthal's latest piece for 'The Athletic' that dropped Monday morning, Astros players called it 'absurd' that Abreu would intentionally hit Garcia, and some even went as far as to say that the Rangers are getting preferential treatment due to their general manager, Chris Young, who previously worked for MLB.
"Some with the Astros suspect the league also is showing favoritism toward the Rangers because their general manager, Chris Young, worked for the league from May 2018 to Dec. 2020. Young, a former major-league pitcher, rose to senior vice president, replacing Joe Torre as the official who decided suspensions and fines for on-field matters, such as intentionally hitting batters," Rosenthal, who is one of Fox's sideline reporters for the ALCS reported.
So much for that 'favoritism.'
Abreu has been one of the Astros' top relievers this season with a 1.75 ERA and 1.042 WHIP through 72 innings pitched.
He's given up a run in two of his last three outings against the Rangers after going 33 scoreless innings dating back to the regular season.