Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Joe Kelly sent a message to Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr., but it could come back to cost him.
The Dodgers reacquired Joe Kelly prior to the MLB trade deadline. Kelly is a fan favorite in Los Angeles, namely for how he approached the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal. He represents a generation of Dodgers fans who feel a World Series was stolen from them.
Nonetheless, Kelly is willing to play his role in other rivalries, as well. In a matchup against the San Diego Padres, the right-hander Kelly threw directly at Fernando Tatis Jr., and eventually struck him out in embarrassing fashion.
Kelly threw two pitches up-and-in, including one which hit the knob of Tatis Jr.'s bat. Tatis, who is surely used to this kind of treatment around baseball this season, did not react. Finally, Kelly emerged the victor of this heated at-bat thanks to a heater Tatis Jr. couldn't catch up with.
The 35-year-old Kelly made his feelings on Tatis known after the strikeout.
Why did Joe Kelly try to bean Fernando Tatis Jr.?
It's unclear what, exactly, Tatis Jr. did to tick Kelly off, but given his past tactics, one can make an educated guess that this has something to do with the Padres star testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. Kelly hasn't commented publicly on Tatis Jr.'s positive test, but those who try to gain a competitive edge (even by accident, as Tatis Jr. has stated), aren't received well after the fact.
Will Joe Kelly be suspended?
It's fair to expect some sort of punishment to be aimed at Kelly. He's a repeat offender in situations like this, and always seems to find himself involved in on-field aggressive behavior. This time, it's impossible for Kelly to make the simple statement that he was defending his teammates. Rather, he went after Tatis Jr. on multiple occasions, and then aimed several expletives at him once the at-bat was resolved. That's due a suspension, if I had to guess.
