Why Pirates Pitcher Chris Devenski, Manager Don Kelly Were Handed Suspensions originally appeared on SportsNet Pittsburgh.
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As the Pittsburgh Pirates start their west coast road trip, the team will be without two familiar faces in manager Don Kelly and pitcher Chris Devenski, who were handed suspensions by the MLB after an incident during Saturday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds.
Devenski, who was ejected from Saturday’s game after throwing a pitch at the Reds’ Sal Stewart, has been suspended for two games after reaching a settlement.
Kelly, the manager, will serve his one-game suspension on Tuesday night as Pittsburgh starts its series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Here’s why the two were issued suspensions.
Why was Chris Devenski suspended?
Devenski was suspended after it looked like he intentionally threw a ball at Stewart in Saturday’s game.
Pirates pitcher Chris Devenski was ejected after umpires determined he intentionally threw at Reds batter Sal Stewart.
Devenski appeared frustrated with Stewart’s timeout call before the pitch pic.twitter.com/xIICaz6cJy
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) May 3, 2026
After Stewart called a timeout, Devenski pitched right at him. The umpires determined that it was intentional, leading to his ejection from the game.
“We had the situation leading up to it with [Devenski] stepping off the rubber and [Stewart] stepping out of the box,” crew chief Alan Porter Porter said Saturday. “Still had time and stepped out. After that, [Devenski] stepped up, fired the pitch and we believe threw it at him intentionally. That’s why we ejected him.”
The pitcher stated that he was not intentionally aiming for Stewart.
“Going hard [inside] to start an at-bat,” Devenski said after the game. “I know the guy likes to dive over [the plate]. Just trying to execute my pitch there, and I think he took it the wrong way.”
Devenski was handed a three-game suspension by the MLB, but after a settlement was reached it was reduced to two.
Why was Don Kelly suspended?
Kelly was also suspended for his role in the incident, though only for one game. He also received an undisclosed fine.
Bench coach Kristopher Negrón will run the team for Tuesday night’s game.
Pirates upcoming schedule 2026
Devenski and Kelly won’t be gone for long as the Pirates start a six-game road trip in Arizona before returning home for a series against the Rockies.
| Date | Opponent |
| May 5 | at Diamondbacks |
| May 6 | at Diamondbacks |
| May 7 | at Diamondbacks |
| May 8 | at Giants |
| May 9 | at Giants |
| May 10 | at Giants |
| May 12 | vs. Rockies |
| May 13 | vs. Rockies |
| May 14 | vs. Rockies |
