CHICAGO — The Major League Baseball Players Association has formally appealed Alex Rodriguez's 211-game suspension.

The New York Yankees slugger was suspended through the 2014 season on Monday when the league penalized 13 players following an investigation into Biogenesis of America, a shuttled Florida anti-aging clinic accused of distributing banned performance-enhancing drugs.

The other 12 players accepted 50-game suspensions, but Rodriguez said he planned to fight. Union head Michael Weiner said the punishment for the third baseman was "way out of line."

Rodriguez is allowed to keep playing until Wednesday's grievance is heard by arbitrator Fredric Horowitz, who isn't expected to rule until November or December at the earliest.

The Yankees were slated to play the White Sox in Chicago on Wednesday night.