Toronto Blue Jays hitting coach Guillermo Martinez was suspended five games and fined an undisclosed amount for making contact with umpire Doug Eddings and for his unsportsmanlike conduct while exchanging the lineup card before the game Wednesday against the Chicago White Sox, the league announced Friday.
After shaking hands with the umpires at home plate, Martinez was ejected from the game. He then proceeded to argue face-to-face with Eddings before heading back to the Toronto dugout.
The disagreement was likely a carryover from the night before, when Eddings was the plate umpire. Several close calls led to arguments from both benches during the back-and-forth game, and Blue Jays pitching coach Pete Walker was ejected. The White Sox would go on to win 7-6 in 12 innings.
Coaches and managers are not permitted to appeal suspensions, so Martinez, 37, began serving the suspension when the Blue Jays played at Milwaukee on Friday night.
A former minor league infielder, Martinez was hired by Toronto as a minor league coach in 2012 and joined the major league staff for the 2019 season.
Information from The Associated Press was included in this report.