Piniella suspended indefinitely, fined

Chicago Cubs Manager Lou Piniella on Sunday was suspended indefinitely and fined an undisclosed amount by Major League Baseball for his latest dirt-kicking tirade against an umpire.

Piniella was ejected in the eighth inning of the Cubs’ 5-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Saturday.

After Angel Pagan was thrown out trying to steal third base on a pitch that bounced away from the catcher, Piniella stormed out of the dugout and kicked dirt as he argued and tossed his cap, leading to his ouster by third base umpire Mark Wegner.

MLB also said Piniella made contact with Wegner during the outburst, which Piniella denied.

Piniella began serving his suspension Sunday, and bench coach Alan Trammell is managing the Cubs in the interim. The length of Piniella’s suspension will be determined today after a meeting with John McHale Jr., the MLB executive vice president for administration.

“I wasn’t expecting anything until the early part of the week,” said Piniella, who has been kicking dirt and tossing bases since he started managing in 1986.

Piniella’s outburst came one day after catcher Michael Barrett and pitcher Carlos Zambrano fought in the dugout and clubhouse, leaving Barrett with a cut on his lower lip that required six stitches at a hospital and a bruise below his left eye.

The Cubs had lost six games in a row before beating the Braves on Sunday in the series finale, but the frustration had been percolating.

“It all starts with playing bad baseball,” General Manager Jim Hendry said. “When you play as poorly as we have now for a few weeks’ time, a lot of frustration sets in because you do have a lot of guys that care and a lot of guys that expect to win.

“Nobody’s anything but extremely disappointed, frustrated with where we’re at.”

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Detroit released right-hander Jose Mesa, who signed as a free agent in December and was 1-1 with a 12.34 earned-run average in 16 appearances with the Tigers, his eighth club in a major league career that began 20 years ago with the Baltimore Orioles.

Right-hander Fernando Rodney, sidelined since May 21 because of tendinitis in his right biceps, is expected to be activated Tuesday.

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Houston optioned right fielder Jason Lane, who was batting .167, to triple-A Round Rock.