Today, I'm embarrassed for MLS.

I'm also appalled, angry and shocked.

One player punched another player in the face and the league's disciplinary committee slapped him on the wrist. You heard me right. By suspending Miami's Diego Serna for one game (in addition to the one game he sat out for his red card) and fining him $5,000, for punching Kansas City's Nick Garcia in the face -- on camera, no less -- MLS has set its penalty for the crime of assault. One game and five grand. Unreal.

If I were a player in MLS today, I'd be irate. Maybe even frightened. The league has shown a lack of consideration for the players' safety. They've said, if you get frustrated, cold-cock a guy, you will have to sit out a couple of games and curb your spending habits a little bit. No one can convince me it's any more severe than that.

Don't get me wrong. Soccer is not a game for the faint of heart. There is a risk of injury on almost every play where two players come together. On every tackle that's a second too late, there's the risk of a broken leg. On every aerial challenge, there's the chance that two heads will crash together.

We've seen some ugly plays in MLS through the first six years, probably none uglier than Mamadou Diallo's late challenge on MetroStars keeper Mike Ammann in 2000, which resulted in broken ribs and a punctured lung for Ammann. But as ugly as that play was, it was still a soccer play. I blasted MLS last year for not punishing Diallo for that challenge, especially because they made a big deal about using the word "intent." On that type of play, you cannot determine "intent" -- not even after a full-blown investigation.

But with Serna, intent is everything. And it is as clear as day. Serna and Garcia are jockeying for position in the box. Serna throws an elbow, which is a red-card in itself. Garcia bounces off, then gets back in the mix, trying to make Serna's job difficult. There is fouling going on at this point, but it is still soccer.

Then, everything changes. Serna turns around to face Garcia, takes his right hand, winds up and slams it into Garcia's face. There has been debate over whether it was a closed first or an open fist, but please don't read that language and think anyone is trying to determine if this was a slap or a punch. If it was not a punch, then it was a forearm shiver, a play that would get an NFL linebacker suspended. To my eye, it looks like Serna gets Garcia with the heel of his hand. Go ahead, right now, and pop yourself on the chin with the heel of your hand and let me know if you think this could cause some damage.

This is not a soccer play. This is a man hauling off and striking another man in the face. There is obvious intent. Why else do you take a swing at someone, if not to hurt them? To my knowledge, the only sport that allows this kind of stuff is hockey, because the NHL feels fighting is a way for players to release frustration.

But even in hockey, if the league deems a punch or an elbow is a sneak attack, a sucker punch, so to speak, it takes action. Tie Domi learned that lesson last year when he took out the New Jersey Devils' Scott Niedermayer with an elbow. In a sport that allows fighting, Domi was suspended eight games for the cheap shot. If Domi's Toronto Maple Leafs had advanced past the Devils in the Stanley Cup playoffs, he would have been a spectator.

Serna should be watching the rest of the MLS playoffs under the glare of his teammates angry eyes. By losing his cool, he let them down big-time. There's no way he should be back on the field in Game 2 of the semifinals. No way.

I've asked around to a few international colleagues, asked them to view the video on mlsnet.com, and tell me what they think their leagues would do. Each has said, "five games minimum." In Germany, I was told, there is a pretty standard penalty for this type of incident. Two months' suspension, without pay.

Making the whole thing worse, Fusion GM Doug Hamilton and coach Ray Hudson are acting like this is a severe penalty for Serna. There have been claims that Garcia did awful things to Serna to provoke him. I say, if that's the case, let's see the video evidence. I've got the Serna punch on tape. Provide me with the goods on Garcia. Hamilton and Hudson are trying to stand behind their player during their team's championship run, I'm sure. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, I guess, because they surely know better. Hudson played the game at the professional level. Hamilton was a college player and I know him to be a knowledgable and reasonable fellow.

Gentlemen, in soccer, you are not allowed to throw a punch. Ever. No one's looking for it, not even when things get physical, because it is not part of the game. Garcia was defenseless.

And with MLS's one-game and five-grand penalty for what Serna did, I'm afraid all MLS players are defenseless now, too.

Jeff Bradley is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at jeff.bradley@espnmag.com.