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Barrett gets 10-game suspension, Anderson five for brawl
RICK GANO
Associated Press
CHICAGO - Chicago Cubs catcher Michael Barrett appealed his 10-game game suspension Friday for his role in a bench-clearing melee with the White Sox last week in which he punched A.J. Pierzynski in the jaw.
Shortly after the suspension was announced, Barrett said he had already filed the appeal, hoping to get the suspension reduced. He was in the lineup Friday when the Cubs played the Atlanta Braves at Wrigley Field.
White Sox outfielder Brian Anderson got a five-game suspension for his participation in a brawl that led to four ejections. White Sox third base coach Joey Cora was suspended two games and Pierzynski, who knocked Barrett over the plate prompting the punch, was fined.
Barrett, Anderson and Cora also were fined undisclosed amounts.
"I didn't know what to expect. I've never been really been in a situation like this," Barrett said Friday. "I tried to prepare myself for the worst-case scenario and obviously hope for the best and just try at this point to take whatever comes next."
Barrett wasn't specific about the basis for his appeal, and said he didn't know a timetable for having it heard. The suspensions were to have begun Friday.
"I don't know what is going to happen. I'm just anxious to put this behind me and move on," Barrett said. He was cheered Friday when his name was announced in the starting lineup.
Cubs manager Dusty Baker said Barrett's penalty was a "little harsh."
"We knew it would be something. We were hoping it wasn't going to be that many days," Baker said.
Was Baker surprised Pierzynski didn't get a suspension?
"Kinda. Yeah," Baker said. "Like I said, whenever there is a cause, there is an effect. The effect was Michael."
Baker said he was next to Cora and actually pulled Cora out of the melee, but wasn't sure what he had done to get the suspension.
"It was all a mess in there," Baker said. "I was next to Joey and I was pulling Joey out of there. I don't know what he did, but evidently something must have come up on the film."
The loss of Barrett would be a big blow to the struggling Cubs, who are already without injured slugger Derrek Lee. Barrett was batting .291 with six homers and 21 RBIs entering Friday's game.
"It's probably going to affect three people. It will affect Michael, whoever is going to be sent down and whoever is called up," Baker said. "It's pretty severe."
White Sox general manager Ken Williams said he would like to see a more aggressive approach to when penalties should begin.
"I just wish Major League Baseball would really take more of an active role and mandate when penalties should be served," Williams said. "Why should Michael Barrett get the chance to beat us the next day? Or the next time we play them? He'll play against us and then serve his suspension against Detroit. That's fair?"
In the second inning, Pierzynski knocked Barrett over at home plate before the throw arrived and slapped the plate after the collision as the ball got away. As Pierzynski got up and started to move around Barrett, the Cubs catcher punched him.
Barrett later said he should have pushed Pierzynski away instead of punching him and apologized to any youngsters who were watching.
"It's an emotional game, no problem with A.J. running him over, that's good hard, clean baseball," Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said.
"In fairness to Michael, you get jolted like that and you get knocked a little silly _and A.J. did take a few steps toward our side of the field - and I think it's just normal that you would react, that there was going to be more action or some kind of a second confrontation and I hope Michael would be given some kind of leniency for that. ... Hopefully there will be some reduction based on those parameters."
Anderson, who hit a bases-loaded sacrifice fly to score Pierzynski, got into a fight with Cubs first baseman John Mabry.
Barrett, Pierzynski, Anderson and Mabry were all ejected.
The game was delayed nearly 15 minutes before Tadahito Iguchi hit a grand slam to give the White Sox a 5-0 lead en route to a 7-0 win.
In 2003, former Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa was suspended eight games for using a corked bat and had it reduced to seven games.
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I must be missing something here. I still don't understand why Pierzynski got in trouble. Did I miss something after the play happened and during the brawl? Everybody has stated that him running over Barrett is good, hard baseball.
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