Major League Baseball's veteran umpire Joe West was suspended one game without pay. His suspension was due to of his physical contact with Philadelphia Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon. Papelbon made an obscene gesture to the crowd and got a seven-game suspension. After Papelbon received the suspension, fans began to wonder what would happen to Joe West. Joe Torre and the MLB suspended him.
Papelbon was booed while on the mound on Sunday. He decided to grab his crotch after blowing a save against the Miami Marlins, making a statement to the fans. Papelbon then decided to charge at West following his ejection from the game. Joe West grabbed Papelbon's jersey trying to keep him off of him. Joe Torre had this to say in response to the umpiring rules,"Joe knows that an umpire cannot initiate physical contact with a player just as a player cannot initiate physical contact with an umpire. I spoke to Joe about the incident, and he admitted that there was a better way to handle the situation. I consider this matter closed." Joe West has decided to serve the suspension Wednesday night as he umps the New York Yankees-Tampa Bay Rays game.
Papelbon wished after the game that he never did what he did. After Joe Wat did what he did, Papelbon was hoping that other umpire Marty Foster would help him out. Neither Marty Foster or the other umpires did anything about what West had done. Papelbon had made a statement that his gesture was not toward the fans. Here's what Joe West had to say, "The whole thing started because the fans booed him and he made an obscene gesture. He had no business doing that," West said Sunday. "He's got to be more professional than that and that's why he was ejected."
"Joe West handled himself appropriately in ejecting Papelbon after the player's lewd gesture to the fans," Torre said in a statement. "I fully understand that Joe was reacting to a player who was acting aggressively, and can understand his frustration with the situation."