Donnelly to Appeal 10-Game Suspension

Three days after a little pine tar ignited an ugly war of words between the Angels and Washington Nationals, major league baseball officials had their say.

Angel reliever Brendan Donnelly, who was ejected from Tuesday’s game after the pine tar was detected on his glove, was suspended for 10 days for using the illegal substance. Angel Manager Mike Scioscia and Washington Manager Frank Robinson were both suspended for one game and fined.

And even that isn’t the final word.

Donnelly and Robinson say they will appeal the ruling. Robinson will get a hearing on Monday, Donnelly on Friday.

Scioscia, saying he didn’t think there was “a mechanism” for appealing his suspension, served his time Friday night, watching the Angel-Florida Marlin game from his office while bench coach Joe Maddon filled in as manager.

“I think it’s a little lengthy,” Donnelly said of the suspension. “Therefore, I am going to appeal. Things have happened in the past with other players in similar situations and the suspensions were not quite as lengthy.”

Last season, St. Louis Cardinal pitcher Julian Tavarez appealed his 10-day suspension for using a foreign substance on the ball and got it reduced to eight days.

When he first heard about the suspension, around noon Friday, Donnelly said it “felt like I had committed a crime.”

But he was quick to point out that he wasn’t minimizing the problems his absence may bring to the Angels.

“I will be letting the team down,” Donnelly said, “because there will be some period that I won’t be in the bullpen to help. For that, I apologize to my teammates and to the organization.”

Scioscia said he wasn’t surprised about the two managerial suspensions, which, according to a statement released by major league baseball, were handed down because of “aggressive and inappropriate actions.”

Angel coach Mickey Hatcher indicated that he had also been fined.

After Robinson’s request to the umpires in Tuesday’s game to check Donnelly’s glove resulted in the Angel reliever’s ejection, Scioscia warned Robinson that his pitchers were also fair game. As their conversation grew heated, both benches cleared.

Said Scioscia, “Baseball is very sensitive to anything that clears the benches for any reason.”

Once again, Robinson didn’t agree with Scioscia.

“I didn’t instigate the situation,” he told Washington reporters. “I didn’t bring it up. All I did was respond to what [Scioscia] said. I think it’s too severe.... [Scioscia] was the aggressor. He threw flames on the fire.”

So, with Friday’s ruling, has Scioscia finally been able to fully digest the events in Tuesday’s game?

“I could wait 20 years and everything wouldn’t be digested,” he said.

Perhaps hardest to digest were the comments of Washington outfielder Jose Guillen, who called Scioscia “a piece of garbage” Wednesday after having to be restrained by three members of his club Tuesday.

Guillen, a member of the Angels last season, was suspended for the last eight games of the regular season and the playoffs for throwing a tantrum when he was removed from a game and then verbally confronting Scioscia.

“Enough is enough,” was all Scioscia would say on the subject of Guillen on Friday.

“I’m not shocked,” Angel reliever Scot Shields said of Guillen’s comment. “I don’t think anybody [in the Angel clubhouse] is shocked. Everybody knows he likes to run his mouth a little bit.”

Said Donnelly, “I’d like to say thank you to Jose Guillen for being such a classy guy,” using an obviously sarcastic tone.

Said Hatcher, “Mike’s a good person. He’s not the guy who is in trouble everywhere he plays. It’s sad that [Guillen] said it.”