On Saturday, we had the first dustup of the season. After being hit by a pitch, Cincinnati Reds outfielder Nicholas Castellanos made his way around the bases, scoring on a wild pitch. Once he was called safe, Castellanos stood up and flexed in front of pitcher Jake Woodford. Those actions began what became a benches clearing shoving match.
Despite the ruckus, and amidst the various ejections, only one player was suspended. Castellanos received a two game suspension for some reason, a punishment which he is rightfully appealing.
Cincinnati Reds outfielder Nicholas Castellanos does not deserve suspension
It may not be much of a surprise that Castellanos was suspended; after all, he was the only player ejected during that ‘brawl.’ But even that ejection was unwarranted, as the Reds’ outfielder was ready to walk back to the dugout after making his point.
When looking at the replay of that incident, Castellanos did not initiate any contact. Instead, the contact was initiated by Cardinals’ catcher Yadier Molina and umpire Tony Randazzo. One can quibble with Castellanos’ actions as being unnecessary, but the benches did not clear until Molina got in the outfielder’s face.
Then, as the benches cleared, the first person out of either dugout was Cardinals’ pitching coach Mike Maddux. That led to the Reds heading onto the field to protect their player, especially after Molina’s reaction. One could easily argue that Molina and Maddux were the real catalysts to the situation escalating even further.
Instead, Molina was one of five players to receive a fine for their actions, a fate that Maddux avoided. Woodford was not fined, although one could argue that he had thrown at Castellanos in the first place. In this case, the aggrieved received the harshest penalty, as he has been blamed for setting off that incident.
Cincinnati Reds outfielder Nicholas Castellanos deserved a fine at most for his actions on Saturday. For him to be the only player suspended is ridiculous.