Over the past couple of years, Major League Baseball has started cracking down on pitchers using foreign substances to help their performance on the mound. And it sounds like New York Mets closer Edwin Díaz has found himself in trouble and facing a potential 10-game ban as a result of what umpires believed was a sticky substance on his glove.
During Sunday night’s game against the Chicago Cubs, New York Mets closer Edwin Díaz was ejected for having a foreign substance after umpires inspected his hands and glove as he entered the game. Díaz now faces a 10-game ban, which he can appeal.
After the game, Díaz claims that he did not have a sticky substance but used the “same thing always” – a combination of Rosin, sweat and a little dirt.
“I was really surprised because I didn’t have anything on my hand, my glove, my belt,” Díaz said after the game according to ESPN. “They always check my hat, everything. They just thought that it was sticky a lot.
“As soon as they saw me, they was trying to throw me out of the game. I understood. That’s their job. That’s part of the game.”
Crew chief Vic Carapazza disagreed, saying it “definitely wasn’t Rosin and sweat.”
“We’ve checked thousands of these,” Carapazza said after the game. “I know what that feeling is. This was very sticky.”
Despite Díaz’s ejection, the Mets ultimately won the game 5-2.
[ESPN]
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