Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters right-hander Satoru Kanemura received a suspension until the end of the playoffs and a 2 million yen fine Monday for criticizing the decision of team manager Trey Hillman, officials of the Pacific League club said.
Nippon Ham removed Kanemura from the active roster the same day, following the 30-year-old's comments from the previous day in which he said that he would "never forgive" Hillman for taking him off the mound in the fifth inning with a chance to win his 10th decision in the team's game against Chiba Lotte.
The Fighters had been leading the game 4-1 when Hillman gave the order for Kanemura to leave the mound with two outs and the bases loaded, and Lotte rallied off reliever Takehiko Oshimoto to tie the score the same frame before winning the game on Benny Agbayani's grand slam in the seventh.