Red Sox reliever Joe Kelly’s 6-game suspension upheld

Joe Kelly’s appeal for his six-game suspension has been denied, forcing the right-handed reliever to miss several games for the Boston Red Sox.

The Boston Red Sox will have to get by without Joe Kelly in the bullpen for nearly a week.

Major League Baseball announced on Thursday that the appeal for Kelly’s six-game suspension has been denied. He will start serving the suspension tonight and be eligible to return on May 2.

Kelly received the temporary ban for drilling New York Yankees first baseman Tyler Austin with a pitch on April 11. The hit by pitch was in retaliation to Austin sliding hard into second base, nearly taking out Brock Holt. While the Brockstar was unharmed, it seemed clear that Austin went in spikes up targetting more than the bag.

Austin slammed his bat on the ground – a clear overreaction to a beaning he must have known was coming. Kelly fearlessly motioned for Austin to bring it. Austin charged the mound and fists went flying. Within moments the benches had cleared and we had a full-blown brawl on our hands.

Kelly got a few good licks in before he was pulled away, which contributed to the length of his suspension and almost certainly left little hope for a successful appeal. It was worth it. A reliever that Red Sox fans had bemoaned since his Opening Day meltdown was now a hero. He received a thunderous ovation during introductions before the next game at Fenway. Fans could be spotted wearing “Joe Kelly Fight Club” t-shirts. Nothing makes you more of an icon among Boston sports fans than standing up to the Yankees. Just ask Jason Varitek.

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Austin somehow only got a five-game suspension despite being the one who charged the mound to start the melee. The result of his appeal has yet to be announced and he was in Thursday’s lineup against the Minnesota Twins.

Kelly has settled down since his brutal first appearance of the season. He hasn’t allowed a run since, spanning 11 1/3 innings. He now owns a 3.09 ERA and 0.86 WHIP. He has struck out 11 and walked four.

The Red Sox called on Kelly for a total of three innings over the last two games in Toronto. He likely would have needed at least a couple days of rest to recover from that workload, limiting the damage done by his suspension. Perhaps manager Alex Cora’s heavy usage of him during the Blue Jays series was in anticipation of Kelly’s appeal getting denied.

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Boston must now play the next six games shorthanded, as they are not able to call up a replacement for a suspended player. If the bullpen puts in a heavy workload over the next few games then we may see a tired reliever sent down to Triple-A simply to get a fresh arm to help the big league club.