Los Angeles Dodgers Rumors: Chase Utley to Play after Appealing 2-Game Suspension? [UPDATE]

UPDATE: Chase Utley will most likley be playing tonight. Two baseball officials stated that there will not be sufficient time to give Utley's appeal due process. 

Original Story:

Will New York Mets fans have to watch Chase Utley slide a few more times in games 3 and 4?

Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman Utley was suspended for sliding into Mets second baseman Ruben Tejada and subsequently breaking his leg. The veteran is expected to be appealing his two-game suspension, which is expected to be heard on Monday prior to game 3. If the suspension is revoked, Utley would be able to play in the rest of the NLDS.

After the game, which the Dodgers won 5-2, the MLB officials investigated the collision and concluded that Utley's slide violated the Official Baseball Rule 5.09 (a)(13). Joe Torre, the MLB chief baseball officer, released this statement:

"I recognize that there has been much commentary and many questions regarding the unfortunate play in last night's game in which Ruben Tejada was injured. As I said after the game, the determination of whether a baserunner has intentionally interfered with a player attempting to turn a double play is left to the judgment of the Umpire on the field, and that judgment call is not subject to review. I should add that determining where to draw the line between an illegal slide and a legitimate hard play is an extremely difficult call for our Umpires.

However, after thoroughly reviewing the play from all conceivable angles, I have concluded that Mr. Utley's action warrants discipline. While I sincerely believe that Mr. Utley had no intention of injuring Ruben Tejada, and was attempting to help his Club in a critical situation, I believe his slide was in violation of Official Baseball Rule 5.09 (a)(13), which is designed to protect fielders from precisely this type of rolling block that occurs away from the base.

We have been in discussions with the Players Association throughout the year regarding potential rule changes to better protect middle infielders, and we intend to continue those discussions this offseason."

Utley's agent, Joel Wolfe, called the suspension "outrageous." He argued that Utley did what every baseball player is taught to do when trying to break up a double play.

"We routinely see plays at second base similar to this one that have not resulted in suspensions," Wolfe said. "Chase feels terrible about Ruben Tejada's injury and everyone who knows him knows that he would never intentionally hurt anybody."

The Dodgers are supporting Utley's decision to appeal.

"It was a hard, aggressive, legal slide to me," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said prior to the suspension. "Our organization is proud of the way Chase plays. We love the way he plays. He's got a reputation for playing the game right, playing it hard, and we're behind him 100%."

Utley's slide during the seventh inning kept the Dodgers' bats alive. They went on to have a four-run inning, which helped tie the series at one game apiece.

Game 3 of NLDS between the Dodgers and the Mets will take place Monday night at Citi Field in New York at 8:07 p.m. ET.