Cubs' Addison Russell to Be Optioned to Triple-A After Domestic Violence Ban

Chicago Cubs infielder Addison Russell is scheduled to return from a 40-game suspension stemming from allegations of domestic violence on Thursday, but the team will instead keep him in Triple-A for the foreseeable future.

"There have been some real promising signs with his play," president of baseball operations Theo Epstein said when pointing to baseball decisions while explaining the rationale, per Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com. "Six games just isn't enough to get fully up to speed to come up to the big league club."

Rogers explained Russell was granted seven days in the minor leagues near the end of his suspension by major league rules, but the Cubs are extending that time.

In terms of on the field, Javier Baez is the everyday shortstop now for the Cubs and figures to continue in that role as one of the best players in the league who finished as the National League MVP runner-up last season. Epstein said Russell will "split time evenly between short and second."

Off the field, Russell's ex-wife, Melisa Reidy, used her blog to detail how he was emotionally and physically abusive toward her a number of times during their marriage.

Rogers noted in September 2018 that she posted a since-deleted Instagram post in 2017 saying Russell wasn't faithful, and a friend commented on it, saying Russell physically abused Reidy. Reidy told Rogers she wasn't ready to speak with MLB investigators when they initially contacted her after the Instagram post but explained why she spoke out.

"It wasn't sitting right with me," Reidy said. "I took it upon myself to do what I needed to do regardless what could happen financially. I know that I'm going to be OK. ... I shouldn't have to feel like I can't speak out to help someone else in order to protect someone that hurt me."

Russell apologized for his "past actions" in February, and Epstein pointed to the fact that "there has been progress, even though there is a tremendous amount of work ahead for him."