DETROIT -- Jim Leyland's first suspension as Tigers manager will cost him an entire series. He'll miss the club's next three games and pay an undisclosed amount in fines to Major League Baseball as a result of arguments with umpires on Monday and Tuesday at Texas.

The suspension was announced on Thursday, an off-day for the Tigers. Because it takes effect immediately, it means he'll spend this weekend's series at Cleveland as an observer once the games begin, watching from somewhere other than the field. Hitting coach Lloyd McClendon, who has taken over as manager over the years whenever Leyland has been ejected from a game, is expected to take over the managerial reins for the series.

The "inappropriate conduct," as described in the announcement, that led to the suspension stemmed from two separate incidents over back-to-back nights. Leyland was ejected from Monday's series opener in the sixth inning after racing out of the dugout to argue with home-plate umpire Eric Cooper, who changed a call from a foul ball to a hit by pitch to Rangers batter Max Ramirez. He had returned to the Tigers dugout by the time that Cooper ejected him, but then went back out to have his say.

"First of all, the ball did hit the guy," Leyland said after that game. "I was upset that [Cooper] said he was blocked out. If you were blocked out, you should check [with first-base umpire Angel Hernandez] right away. It took him three times to look at Hernandez."

Leyland's actions the next night were expected to get him some sort of penalty. He was upset when Hernandez, then umpiring behind the plate, declined an appeal to first-base umpire Marty Foster after Hernandez ruled that Michael Young did not go around on a checked swing on a 2-2 pitch in the ninth inning.

Young eventually drew a walk, and the Rangers came back for three runs in the inning and a walkoff victory. Once the game ended, Leyland picked up the argument and followed Hernandez on his way off the field, pointing at him and yelling as Hernandez headed towards the tunnel leading to the umpires' dressing room.

"Michael Young was struck out," Leyland told reporters afterwards. "Everybody thought Michael Young was struck out, including Michael Young. He started to walk away to the dugout. That's no excuse for us not winning the ballgame, but Michael Young was struck out clearly. I don't say anything, but you get tired of not saying something every time."

The irony is that Leyland isn't one to say something very often, despite his fiery attitude. He isn't one to argue with umpires, and he strongly disagrees with the idea that an argument can motivate a team. If he goes out to argue a call, it's usually with the intent of either protecting a player from being ejected by picking up his case or trying to get umpires to confer about a call.

In this case, however, the frustration over a disappointing season likely added to the emotions. The Tigers were expected to be battling for a playoff spot or preparing for an October run at this point in the year, but injuries and inconsistency quickly sent this season off in a different direction. Detroit enters this weekend with a 71-80 record, fourth in the American League Central and just three games out of last place. Two more losses will clinch the Tigers' first losing season since 2005.

Leyland declined to react publicly to the suspension. "I have no comment on any of it," he said Thursday when reached by phone.

Leyland is allowed to be at Progressive Field for the games while suspended, but he cannot be in the dugout.