Why Pirates pitcher Chris Devenski was suspended two games after incident with Reds' Sal Stewart

Why was Pirates pitcher Chris Devenski suspended?

Devenski was suspended for throwing a pitch at Sal Stewart, striking him in the ribs. This came after Stewart called time verbally to the umpire earlier in the at bat.

The umpiring crew believes that Devenski took exception to this time call and struck Devenski on purpose.

“We had the situation lead up to it with (Devenski) stepping off the rubber and (Stewart) stepping out of the box,” crew chief Alan Porter told a pool reporter. “Still had time and stepped out. After that, (Devenski) stepped up and he fired the pitch and, we believe, threw it at him intentionally. That’s why we ejected him.”

Devenski told reporters after the game that the pitch wasn't meant to intentionally hit Stewart, but that the gameplan was to pitch tight to Stewart.

Reds manager Terry Francona also reacted to the news postgame, saying that he largely missed the hit by pitch itself, but recalls the following:

"I think Sal said he called timeout and he didn't like it," Francona said. "Actually I was talking to (pitching coach Derek Johnson) about our pitching and trying to figure out what we were going to do the next inning, so I kind of missed that one. I thought the umpires did fine."

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Why was Pirates manager Don Kelly suspended?

Kelly was suspended for his role in the ordeal. After the controversial pitch, Kelly gave the umpiring crew an earful, having Devenski's back in the exchange.

While it's unclear whether the pitch was influenced by Kelly in any way, as the manager, he falls on the sword in this suspension. He will serve the one-game suspension right away.

Pirates 2026 schedule

Devenski will miss the next two games, meaning he will sit out the bulk of the Arizona Diamondbacks series, assuming he does not appeal and begins his suspension immediately. Given MLB's rules for disciplinary suspensions, the Pirates will not be able to recall a player to take Devenski's roster spot for that time.

Kelly will miss Tuesday's game against the Diamondbacks, serving his suspension immediately. Bench coach Kristopher Negron will take Kelly's place as the manager for this one game, with Kelly returning Wednesday.