Dodgers second baseman Chase Utley's appeal of his two-game suspension won't be heard until Monday, after his team's NL Division Series against the Mets is over, the New York Daily News reported Tuesday, citing an unidentified source.
Utley, suspended for his hard slide Saturday that broke Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada's leg, had been expected to be available for Tuesday's Game 4 after MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said it was "unlikely" the hearing would take place before the game.
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The Mets hold a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series after Monday's 13-7 win, before which Utley was booed loudly by the Citi Field crowd during player introductions. Utley was available, pending his hearing, but wasn't in the lineup.
If the appeal of MLB disciplinarian Joe Torre's two-game suspension isn't heard until next Monday, then Utley would be available for a deciding Game 5, if necessary, Thursday in Los Angeles. Should the Dodgers advance, he also would be able to play Saturday and Sunday in the first two games of the NLCS.
According to the Daily News, Utley's representatives along with representatives from the MLB Players Association met Monday with Major League Baseball to try to discuss when the hearing would take place, and John McHale Jr., an MLB Executive VP of Administration, will hear Utley's appeal Monday.
If the Dodgers lose Game 4 or 5 and Utley loses his appeal, then his suspension would be served at the start of the 2016 regular season.
