Los Angeles Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon was suspended by Major League Baseball for his actions following last week’s game against the Oakland Athletics on Opening Day.
MLB’s Senior Vice President Michael Hill made the announcement that Rendon would begin serving his four-game suspension beginning last night, as the club is scheduled to face the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park. The original announcement was for five games, but after a hasty appeal process between the league and MLB Player’s Association, it was reduced to four games.
Rendon and a fan exchanged words in a heated interaction following the loss, resulting in the Angels’ third baseman attempting a punch that missed his head. He revealed that he and the fan spoke prior to Monday’s game, explaining that the two had spoken on the phone and apologized for what had happened.
The 32-year-old was suspended last season for his role in another on-field incident when the Angels and Mariners after retaliation bean balls were exchanged, resulting in the suspension of 12 players in total. Rendon received five games in that altercation.
MLB fined Rendon an undisclosed amount for his most recent incident, and it was in the best interest of himself and of the Angels to begin the punishment immediately and move on with the season.
The Angels will be playing with a 25-man roster during Rendon’s absence.
Goal for Angels and Anthony Rendon is ‘to be the last team standing’
The Angels spent most of the offseason improving their roster, adding valuable depth to complement superstars Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, along with veterans David Fletcher, Anthony Rendon and Taylor Ward.
Rendon is looking to bounce back from an injury-plagued year in which he was only able to play in 47 games.
Rendon not only wants to help the Angels return to the postseason for the first time since 2014, he has his sights on winning the World Series.
If Spring Training was any indication, the Angels could very well be a sneaky good team this season. They finished with the best record in Cactus League play for a second consecutive year, and Rendon was a big part of that success.
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