(Reuters) – New York Mets pitcher Max Scherzer received a 10-game suspension and an undisclosed fine for violating the prohibitions on foreign substances, the Major League Baseball (MLB) said on Thursday.
Scherzer was ejected before the fourth inning of Wednesday’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers after umpire Phil Cuzzi examined his glove and discovered a sticky substance that the pitcher argued was a combination of sweat and rosin.
The umpires had checked Scherzer’s glove earlier in the game and asked him to change it and wash his hands before the start of the third inning.
According to the MLB rules, rosin may be determined to be a prohibited foreign substance when used excessively or when combined with other substances.
“Based on the umpires’ training to detect rosin on a pitcher’s hands, they concluded that the level of stickiness during the fourth inning check was so extreme that it was inconsistent with the use of rosin and/or sweat alone,” said the MLB in a statement.
“Both umpires reported difficulty removing the substance from their own hands for multiple innings. Consistent with the Official Baseball Rules, the umpires then appropriately ejected Mr Scherzer from the game.”
This was the fourth ejection in the 38-year-old pitcher’s career.
Scherzer told reporters after the game on Wednesday he would “have to be an absolute idiot” to have used a non-rosin substance following the initial umpire check, and said he did not want to comment further as it was becoming a legal matter.
(Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in Mexico City; Editing by Sonali Paul)
