Chicago Cubs shortstop Addison Russell has been suspended 40 games by the MLB, and that doesn’t seem like enough.
After a lengthy investigation by Major League Baseball into allegations that he abused his wife, Addison Russell has been suspended for 40 games. Word of the alleged abuse first surfaced months ago when a friend of his wife, Melisa Reidy, posted allegations of abuse on Instagram. The post was taken down, and MLB sniffed around but it wasn’t until Reidy herself came forward with a harrowing first-person account of the abuse that Russell was punished.
Placed on administrative leave, Russell’s season ended on September 21st. That’s when his suspension will retroactively start, which is infuriating on every level of humanity. To boot, because the Cubs played a 163rd game on Monday, Russell will have 10-games shaved off the suspension that was handed down to him on Wednesday.
Here is the statement from commissioner Rob Manfred from ESPN:
“My office has completed its investigation into the allegations that Addison Russell violated Major League Baseball’s Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy,” Manfred said in a statement. “Having reviewed all of the available evidence, I have concluded that Mr. Russell violated the Policy and should be subject to discipline in the form of an unpaid suspension that will cover 40 games.”
The domestic violence allegations against him involved altercations with his wife. This has been an ongoing investigation since last season, and Russell hasn’t been present on the roster for a month now. This year he had a big decline in production, and apart of that could be what was going on behind the scenes.
If these allegations are true, Russell should get more than 40 games; PED users get 80 games. The only person they hurt was themselves. In the shortstop’s case, he allegedly made a woman’s life hell, tormenting and abusing her physically and leaving an unforeseen emotional toll. That should get him way more than a quarter of the season, at the very least half the season and no playoffs. A full 162-game ban shouldn’t be off the table, as MLB needs to set a precedent for itself and for other major sports leagues when it comes to the handling of domestic abuse.