Mikolas will appeal the five-game suspension he received Thursday and will be eligible to pitch for the Nationals until the appeal process is completed, Evan Drellich of The Athletic reports.
MLB issued bans for Mikolas and teammate Cade Cavalli (seven games) along with Boston's Willson Contreras (seven games) and Nate Eaton (three games) for their roles in a benches-clearing incident Tuesday. Mikolas' suspension was set to begin Friday, but the 37-year-old righty's appeal will keep in line to make his scheduled start Sunday against the Pirates. One or both Nationals pitchers could end up dropping their appeals at a more opportune time as the team figures out how to juggle the two looming absences from its rotation.