As it became further clear that Hunter Strickland acted on his own without his team’s encouragement to belt Bryce Harper, the Giants’ reliever was slapped with a six-game suspension Tuesday.
The word came down from Major League Baseball a day after Strickland drilled Harper, who threw his helmet toward the mound while charging Strickland.
“I’m obviously not thrilled about it,” Strickland said. “But it’s their call. We’ll go from there. Whatever they ultimately decide, I’ll own it and take the responsibility.”
Harper was suspended for “intentionally hitting Harper with a pitch, inciting the bench-clearing incident and fighting,” according to MLB.