MLB Suspends George Kontos and Bruce Bochy for Incident with Andrew McCutchen

San Francisco Giants reliever George Kontos, who was ejected after plunking Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen on Tuesday night, was suspended for three games by MLB on Wednesday.

Giants manager Bruce Bochy, who was ejected by rule, was given a lighter suspension, which is the precedent in these instances. 

The news comes from MLB's official Twitter account:

Both benches were warned when Kontos threw a pitch behind Starling Marte in the bottom of the eighth inning with his team trailing, 8-2. 

Just two batters later, he nailed McCutchen, forcing the umpire to toss both him and Bochy.

"First pitch of the seventh inning, (McCutchen) put a really good swing on it, and they were hacking early and out over the plate, so I was trying to pitch inside. A sinker got away from me a little bit," Kontos reasoned after the game (per MLB.com's Chris Haft).

Nevertheless, mistake or not, this punishment was inevitable, as well as another indication that MLB is unwavering in instances like these.    

And on Kontos' 28th birthday, the news only continued to get worse, according to FOX Sports' Jon Morosi:

His demotion to Triple-A Fresno, however, seemed to be unavoidable considering the early struggles he has had in 2013.   

In 31 appearances this season, Kontos has been smacked around to the tune of a 5.76 ERA and 1.45 WHIP. Tuesday's incident was the culmination of what has been a frustrating season for the righty, along with the Giants' pitching staff as a whole.

Last year, Kontos compiled a 2.47 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 44 strikeouts in 43.2 relief innings, so perhaps the suspension and demotion will give him enough time to clear his head and return to being the reliable bullpen arm the Giants need him to be as they defend their World Series title.