MLB Umpire Joe West Suspended 1 Game for Contact with Jonathan Papelbon

The fallout from Jonathan Papelbon's gesture aimed at Philadelphia Phillies fans and subsequent argument with umpire Joe West has continued, as Major League Baseball has suspended West for one game due to his involvement in the incident.    

Erik Malinowski of Fox Sports passes along MLB's statement on the matter:

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MLB announces that Joe West has been suspended one game. Statement from Joe Torre: pic.twitter.com/4LErqh7EYm

— erik malinowski (@erikmal) September 17, 2014"

Here's video of the incident:

There are perhaps two ways of looking at West's involvement in this dispute. The first is that if a player or manager grabbed an umpire's shirt and shoved him out of his way, he'd be suspended for far more than one game.

Zachary Levine of Baseball Prospectus outlines the second viewpoint:

It would seem MLB Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Joe Torre split the difference here, acknowledging that West had little recourse to get Papelbon out of his face but could have also acted in a more appropriate, less aggressive manner himself. 

Rich Schultz/Getty Images

West has a history of getting into heated disputes and having a short fuse with players and managers, having earned himself the nickname "Cowboy" over the years. That has earned him a bit of a reputation, and one wonders if Torre also considered that when deciding on a punishment. 

While West's involvement in this incident will likely be forgotten soon enough, one can only wonder how it will affect Papelbon's future in Philadelphia.

While the closer claimed he was simply adjusting his athletic supporter and not responding to the hordes of fans booing him as he walked off the field, the Phillies organization didn't seem to buy that explanation, per Matt Gelb of The Philadelphia Inquirer:

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Phillies statement begins: "The Phillies fully support the decision of the Commissioner’s Office..."

— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) September 16, 2014"

For a team that is in desperate need of renovation, could Papelbon be one of the first players to go? That remains to be seen, but for now, all parties will be looking to put this incident behind them for the season's final stretch.