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Suspensions Don't Change Rays' Attitude

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By MARC LANCASTER

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 7, 2008

ARLINGTON, Texas - The Rays will pay a heavy price during the next couple of weeks for their actions in Thursday night's brawl at Fenway Park, but the suspensions handed down Friday did nothing to soften their stance.

In fact, Manager Joe Maddon called a closed-door team meeting shortly after he was informed that five of his players had been banned a total of 23 games by Major League Baseball to make sure his team knew where he stood.

"I just wanted to reiterate to our group that I felt, actually, proud of the way we handled the situation Thursday," Maddon said. "I thought we handled it the right way and I don't think it can be disputed in any way, how we handled ourselves during this entire event, and for that I'm very happy with our guys. Now it's up to us to take this negative situation and turn it into something positive."

That task will be made more difficult by the roster realities the Rays will face the next couple of weeks. They expect both James Shields (six-game suspension) and Edwin Jackson (five games) to miss one turn each in the rotation. They also figure to be without Jonny Gomes (five games), Carl Crawford (four games) and Akinori Iwamura (three games) for extended stretches, depending on how the appeals process plays out.

MLB staggers suspensions when multiple players from one team are involved. Shields and Gomes were slated to begin serving their bans Friday night, but both appealed, putting their punishment on hold. Crawford's suspension is scheduled to start Wednesday, Jackson's Friday and Iwamura's on June 17. It wasn't clear whether those three would appeal or accept their punishment.

Boston had three players suspended, with Coco Crisp getting seven games, Jon Lester five and Sean Casey three. Lester began serving his time Friday, but Crisp appealed. Casey's suspension isn't scheduled to start until June 14.

The Rays weren't surprised to have players suspended, but the team did object to the imbalance in the number of games and players who were punished. In particular, they expected Crisp to face a lengthier ban considering they felt he was the instigator.

"Absolutely, I thought he was going to get a little more than that," said Shields, "but it is what it is."

As for Crisp's postfight assertion that the Rays were "trying to pull my hair like little girls ... instead of throwing some real punches or something like that," Gomes - who was pictured in newspapers across the country Friday with his fist cocked above a prostrate Crisp - had to object.

"I know he's not talking about me," Gomes said.

While the Rays presented a united front in defending their actions, they weren't exactly puffing out their chests about what had transpired.

"It's nothing to be proud of," Jackson said. "It's not some big accomplishment. It's one of those situations that the only way to explain it is instincts."

Added Crawford: "I just wish it didn't have to happen, but it happened, so you can't really go back."

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