New York (AFP) — Major League Baseball on Monday upheld the five-game suspension of Baltimore third baseman Manny Machado for a bat-tossing incident that sparked a brawl.

The Orioles said Machado would begin serving the ban on Monday, when they host the Texas Rangers.

Machado was sanctioned after flinging his bat down the third base line as he swung and missed on a pitch from Oakland pitcher Fernando Abad in June 8 game.

Machado, 21, insisted the bat slipped out of his hands, but his action sparked a bench-clearing brawl and resulted in ejections for both Machado and Abad, who nearly hit Machado with the previous pitch.

Machado, a 2013 All-Star and the American League’s Gold Glove Award winner at third base last season, is hitting .239 with seven home runs and 17 runs-batted-in through 54 games this year.

AFP Photo / Rob Carr

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