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MLB suspends Brad Keller, Tim Anderson and Rick Renteria after benches-clearing incident

Kansas City Royals pitcher Brad Keller will miss one start after plunking Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson with a pitch. Major League Baseball handed Keller a five-game suspension for his actions.

Perhaps surprisingly, Anderson was hit with a suspension. He will miss one game for his “conduct after the benches cleared,” according to MLB. Anderson was reportedly suspended for using racially-charged language, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

The issue started after Anderson hit a home run off Keller in the fourth inning of Wednesday’s game. Anderson threw his bat, and yelled in the direction of the White Sox’s dugout after hitting the ball.

The next time up, Keller hit Anderson with a pitch. That brought both dugouts on to the field.

Tim Anderson.
Tim Anderson and Brad Keller will be hit with suspensions. (AP Photo)

While no punches were thrown, there was a lot of yelling and shoving. At one point, it looked like managers Ned Yost and Rick Renteria were about to go at it. That was enough for Renteria to also receive a one-game suspension.

Once the dust was settled, Anderson, Keller and Renteria were all ejected from the contest. Some questioned why Anderson got ejected since he was the one who got hit with the pitch. MLB reportedly determined Anderson’s language warranted the one-game punishment.

Renteria will serve his suspension Friday. Both Anderson and Keller can appeal their suspensions.

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Chris Cwik is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik

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