Reason for Pirates' Keone Kela Suspension Revealed
By Scott Rogust
On Monday, the Pittsburgh Pirates reinstated pitcher Keone Kela from the 60-day injured list, only to suspend him for two-games for violating the Uniform Player's Contract (UPC).
While the organization were mum on the reason, it was finally revealed.
Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports reported on Tuesday night that Kela was suspended due to an altercation with director of cultural readiness and performance coach Hector Morales.
Info tricking out on Kela ... https://t.co/4aNGAZqm65
— Jason Mackey (@JMackeyPG) July 24, 2019
No additional details on the altercation were released. However, since it violated the team's UPC, the Pirates opted to suspend him.
Kela has been out of action for a majority of the season due to shoulder issues, which limited him to 11 innings of work. In that span, Kela posted a 4.63 ERA along with 11 strikeouts and four walks, while failing to convert on all four of his save opportunities.
Pirates Reinstate, Suspend Keone Kela https://t.co/GpvPMFAs0l pic.twitter.com/kmlTk3dCqt
— MLB Trade Rumors (@mlbtraderumors) July 22, 2019
Kela is eligible to return to the team on Wednesday, in Pittsburgh's third game of a four-game home series against the St. Louis Cardinals.