Major League Baseball is expediting Carlos Quentin’s appeal of his eight-game suspension and could rule on the matter today, according a report on the U-T San Diego website.

Writes Padres beat writer Bill Center:

If the appeal process isn’t completed there is also a strong chance that the left fielder will drop the appeal and begin his suspension Monday.

“Major League Baseball is very aware of the situation,” a source in the league office said Saturday. “I think everyone would like to see a little time between the incident and Quentin’s next appearance at Dodger Stadium.”

The Padres visit the Dodgers for three games beginning tomorrow.

Update (11:30 a.m.): Quentin is not in the Padres’ lineup today, will drop his appeal and begin the eight-game suspension immediately. That means he won’t play in the series at Dodger Stadium. The Padres’ next series in Los Angeles is June 3-5.

Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke broke his left collarbone in a benches-clearing brawl when Quentin charged the mound and tackled Greinke to the ground Thursday night at Petco Park. Greinke is expected to miss the next two months after undergoing successful surgery Saturday. Jerry Hairston Jr. was also suspended one game and fined for his role in the brawl, and has appealed the ruling with MLB.