Los Angeles

MLB Suspends Dodgers' Chase Utley From Games 3, 4 of NLDS

Chase Utley's hard slide that broke Ruben Tejada's right leg has people calling the Dodgers' second baseman dirty.

On Sunday, Major League Baseball announced that Utley would be suspended for NLDS Games 3 and 4 as a result of his illegal slide in the 7th inning Saturday aganist the Mets.

"The Dodgers stand behind Chase Utley and his decision to appeal the suspension issued tonight by Major League Baseball," The Dodgers said in a statement released following the decision.

"I sure hope as hell that Chase Utley wasn't trying to hurt somebody," said Major League Baseball's Chief Officer Joe Torre in a postgame press conference. "He's been a great player for a long time, and he's played hard. I think it was a little late. I'm looking at it just to see if there's anything we feel should be done."

With one out in the seventh inning, Utley ran head first into the legs of Ruben Tejada at second base in order to break up a double play. Instead, he broke Tejada's leg.

"When I got out there and grabbed it, he said there was no feeling in his foot," Mets' manager Terry Collins said of the moment he reached Tejada. "Ray stood him up, and he said 'I can't move my foot.' Ray said, 'I think he broke his ankle.' So we said we need the cart and that was it."

Tejada was immediately rushed to the hospital where he was diagnosed with a fractured right fibula, an injury that will have him miss the remainder of the postseason.

The Dodgers ended up scoring the tying run on the play, and after a replay overturned the call and awarded Utley second base without having ever touched the bag (a rule we're still not clear on), he scored the go-ahead run, as Los Angeles would take advantage of the Mets emotional state, and tie the best-of-five series at one game apiece.

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