BOSTON -- Michael Pineda says he was just trying to get a better grip on the ball. Now, he wont need one for a while. A day after being caught using pine tar on the mound, the New York Yankees pitcher was suspended for 10 games by the commissioners office on Thursday. Pineda said he wont appeal, costing him two starts before he can return May 5 at the Los Angeles Angels. "I accept it," Pineda said before Thursday nights game at Fenway Park. "I know I made a mistake." Pineda was ejected in the second inning of New Yorks 5-1 loss to Boston after umpires found the pine tar on the right side of the right-handers neck. After the game, Pineda admitted that he used the pine tar to help him grip the ball on a cool, windy night. "I feel so bad," he said Thursday. Pineda said he had never used pine tar before this season. He spent his first season in the majors with the Seattle Mariners in 2011, then missed the last two with the Yankees following right shoulder surgery. "I think he understood" the seriousness of his action, said Yankees manager Joe Girardi, who expected a suspension of about 10 games, "but I think he got caught up in the moment of competing and it got the best of him." Girardi indicated David Phelps would take Pinedas turn in the rotation. Phelps came into the game with two outs in the second after Pineda was ejected. The ejection set off a debate in the baseball world about pitchers who try pine tar, and whether it should be allowed in certain circumstances. Many former aces said they had done it, albeit in a more discreet manner. "Ive seen a lot of things in my career, so Im not blind to it" being viewed as part of baseball, said Girardi, a former catcher in his seventh year as Yankees manager. Rule 8.02(b) prohibits pitchers from altering the ball to gain an unfair advantage, and forbids them from having a foreign substance on them or in their possession on the mound. "I wouldnt be against coming up with an idea" to modify the rule so pitchers could get a better grip on the ball in cold weather, Girardi said. "It would be a great time for someone to start looking at" finding one substance pitchers would be allowed to use. Pineda wasnt seen with the pine tar in the first inning, when the Red Sox roughed him up. Boston manager John Farrell asked plate umpire Gerry Davis to check Pineda after two fast outs the next inning. "I felt like it was a necessity to say something," Farrell said. "You know, I fully respect on a cold night youre trying to get a little bit of a grip. But when its that obvious, something has got to be said." Davis went to the mound, touched Pinedas neck and ejected him. Pineda said no one told him to use it, that he did it "by myself." Earlier this month, Pineda pitched well in a 4-1 win over the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium. Television cameras showed a substance on his hand in the fourth inning -- Pineda said it was dirt, not pine tar. His hand was clean in the fifth and Farrell didnt ask for him to be checked. Pineda said he didnt use pine tar in a start against the Chicago Cubs, in between his Red Sox outings. Among other suspensions of pitchers for pine tar in the past decade, Tampa Bays Joel Peralta was penalized eight games in 2012, the Angels Brendan Donnelly 10 days in 2005 and St. Louis Julian Tavarez 10 days in 2004. The suspensions of Donnelly and Tavarez were cut to eight days after they asked the players association to appeal, and Peralta dropped his challenge with no reduction. Pineda said Thursday he didnt feel the ball well in the first inning when he allowed two runs on four hits. And he said he wanted to be careful not to hit any batters. "I know its pine tar, but the pine tar did not help me" throw harder, he said. "It helped me for feel, (get) a better grip." Red Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski understood why Pineda used the pine tar. "I dont have a problem with guys that do it," he said. "I know as a hitter, I want to get in there and know the guy has a grip. "Put it on your hat, put it on your pants, your belt, put it on your glove, whatever you have to do. You just cant do it that blatantly. That was what the biggest issue was. No one has an issue with him doing it. Its just more of the fact that its so blatant." NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap . - The Oakland Athletics say they are stopping negotiations to extend their lease at the Coliseum. Wholesale NFL Jerseys China . And rest hardly led to rust for the two-time defending NBA champions. http://www.cheapjerseysbaseball.com/. - New Orleans Saints general manager Mickey Loomis says the club has an agreement to bring back outside linebacker Parys Haralson on a one-year deal. Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic .Y. -- Phil Jackson lost out on his preferred coach, but hes working hard on keeping his star player. Cheap MLB Jerseys . Terry came from Boston along with Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce but has appeared in just 35 games after a knee injury, averaging 4.5 points on 36 per cent shooting. Evans was a favourite of fans but not coach Jason Kidd, who used him in just 30 of their 51 games.(SportsNetwork.com) - Just over three weeks after trading Trent Richardson and "giving up" on their season, the Cleveland Browns find themselves tied for first place in the AFC North as they get ready to host the Detroit Lions. Watch the game live on TSN, today at 1pm et/10am pt. But the guy who helped the Browns get there, suburban Cleveland native Brian Hoyer, is gone for the rest of the season after tearing his ACL early in the Browns Week 5 win over the Buffalo Bills. That means previously deposed QB Brandon Weeden, who initially entered to a chorus of boos after replacing Hoyer before finishing 13-of-24 for 197 yards and a touchdown against the Bills, will return as the teams starter as the Browns search for a fourth consecutive win for the first time since 2009. Helping Weeden against Buffalo was Travis Benjamin, the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week, who returned a punt 79 yards for a touchdown among his team record 179 punt-return yards, and WR Josh Gordon, who hauled in four receptions for 86 yards and a score. Willis McGahee added 72 yards on the ground and a touchdown on 26 rushes for Cleveland, which last began 3-2 in 2001 when the Browns fizzled out and finished 7-9. The Lions, meanwhile, lost their 23rd straight game in Wisconsin last week, a 22-9 setback to the Green Bay Packers. The Detroit offense sputtered much of the day thanks in large part to wide receiver Calvin Johnsons absence due to a knee injury. The All-Pro had been listed as questionable on the teams injury report after sitting out practice both Wednesday and Thursday of last week before participating in Fridays session on a limited basis. The Lions announced Sunday that Calvin Johnson is active against the Browns QB Matthew Stafford was 25-for-40 for 262 yards and a touchdown for the Lions, who were coming off wins against Washington and Chicago. "Its a long season and you have to be able to persevere through a lot of ups and downs," said Detroit head coach Jim Schwartz. "We had a down today, and well bounce back from it just like we did after losing to Arizona." The Lions defense was a bright spot, holding the Packers to five field goals and allowing only one offensive touchdown. Detroit and Cleveland will be facing off for the 19th time with the Lions holding the all-time edge, 14-4, and a 5-3 record in Cleveland. Back in 2010, Stafford led the Lions to a come-from-behind 38-37 win over the Browns with one of the most remarkable performances by a rookie QB in NFL history. Stafford brought the Lions back from deficits three different times (21, 3 and 6 points) to either tie or take the lead. WHAT TO WATCH FOR This is the danger of giving up on a young quarterback, one injury and you may need him again. We now know Browns CEO Joe Banner and GM Mike Lombardi had already moved past Weeden in their own minds at least and a second-year QB who is struggling with confidence issues in general isnt about to dismiss that kind of disrespect easily. Chudzinski needs to spin this like he was always behind Weeden or this could spiral out of control quickly and Clevelands stay at the top of the AFC North will likely to be measured in days, not weeks. Weeden, on the other hand, needs to start trusting his reads, stop hesitating and throw the ball on time, which will in turn help with his shoddy accuracy. "We have to approach it with its next man up," Chud said. "Thats the way we have handled the other situations that have come up, whether its quarterback or other positions. I think Brandon did a heck of a job for us coming in the situation as a backup, mentally being ready and making some big plays that helped us win that game last week." Having a pair of big-play options like emerging tight end Jordan Cameron and the speedy Gordon at his disposal will only help Weeden. "Thatt guy is playing a key role in their offense.dddddddddddd. Not just short passes, but also long passes," Schwartz said when discussing Cameron. "Five touchdowns already this year. Hes made a lot of plays for them. Our linebackers and safeties ability to keep him from affecting the game and making big chunks of yards is definitely a key this week." Gordon, meanwhile, has really helped open up the offense during Clevelands current run by hauling in 18 receptions for 303 yards (16.8 avg.) and two TDs over that span. The Lions defense will give up some yardage in between the 20s but they have become very stingy in the red zone, allowing a touchdown percentage of 33.3 percent, third-best in the NFL. A much-improved pass rush, led by rookie DE Ezekiel Ansah, who leads the team and all NFL rookies with 3 1/2 sacks, along with stud DTs Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley have helped spearhead the units resurgence. "Those guys are dominant players at their position," Chudzinski said when talking about Suh and Fairley. "They are two of the best and it is very difficult to get anything going against them. They are a factor in the run game, they are a factor in the pass game." Anyone who thinks Johnson isnt the fulcrum of the Lions offense should watch last weeks game in Green Bay, the first contest in 2013 where Detroit failed to score at least 21 points. "Hes a big part of their offense and its something that I look forward to playing against him, but if hes missing, were still going to go about it." Browns star CB Joe Haden said. "We want to get a "W." Its more about the team than me and Calvin in a one-on-one matchup." Without the All-Pro drawing defenders outside the box, Reggie Bush was pedestrian against the Packers, rushing for just 44 yards one week after piling up a season-high 139 in the previous game against Chicago. Stafford, meanwhile, was sacked a career high-tying five times. "We have to have guys step up," Stafford said when talking about Johnsons absence. "I have to play better. As an offense, we know we have to play better." Problem is, Johnsons running mate outside the numbers, veteran WR Nate Burleson, is also sidelined with a broken left arm suffered in a car accident. "Both of those, Calvin and Nate, are great players and Calvin might be one of the greatest, if not the greatest of all-time," said backup receiver Kris Durham. "We just have to figure out how to make some plays for Matt because hes standing back there with a lot of pressure in his face." That pressure figures to continue against an imposing Cleveland front seven, which has helped the Browns amass 18 sacks on the season -- third-best in the NFL -- and allow just 301.8 yards a game, fourth-best. "They have been doing that without (Jabaal) Sheard the last couple of games, who is one of their better pass rushers," Schwartz said. "They have a lot of guys in there that can rush, (Barkevious) Mingo and (Paul) Kruger, and some big guys inside, (Phil) Taylor. We have to be up to that challenge. Not just in pass protection, but also running." Mingo, like Ansah, is a rookie who has hit the ground running as a pass- rushing specialist. "Hes playing with high effort. Hes a good chase player." Schwartz said when asked about Mingo. "Hes active. Hes around the ball. He has great length. Hes long. He affects the passer in a lot of different ways." OVERALL ANALYSIS The key here is whether or not Johnson suits up and opens up the Detroit offense. His presence means you have to roll a safety over the top and that can create space for Bush. C.J. was back at practice on a limited basis by Thursday so the guess here is that he plays and the Lions get it done. Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Lions 28, Browns 17 ' ' '