Kelly's suspension reduced to 5 games

The Dodgers confirmed on Wednesday that reliever Joe Kelly’s suspension stemming from incidents that took place in Houston last month was reduced from eight games to five.

Kelly, whose suspension was handed down by Major League Baseball following a benches-clearing situation with the Astros on July 28, appealed the punishment and conducted a hearing with MLB on Monday.

Kelly is on the 10-day IL with right shoulder inflammation. He cannot serve the suspension while not on the active roster, so his punishment will kick in when his IL stint is finished. The Dodgers have not given a timetable for Kelly’s return, but the first day he would be eligible to come off the IL is Wednesday, Aug. 19.

Kelly was handed the original eight-game suspension when MLB determined he “threw a pitch in the area of the head of Alex Bregman and later taunted Carlos Correa, which led to the benches clearing,” per MLB’s findings.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was also suspended one game, which he served the night of the ruling. Houston manager Dusty Baker received a fine for his involvement in the incident.

The 32-year-old Kelly has made seven relief appearances in 2020, recording 6 1/3 scoreless innings with five walks and five strikeouts.