Umpire ejects Reds manager after allowing Yankees pitcher to wash sticky hands, continue
Cincinnati Reds manager David Bell was ejected from his team’s 6-2 defeat to the New York Yankees Friday after protesting the umpiring crew’s handling of a foreign substance check.
Leading 1-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth inning, Yankees starter Clarke Schmidt was stopped by all four umpires on his trot to the mound. His glove and right hand were thoroughly examined before being told to wash his hands in the visitor’s dugout.
Schmidt underwent another examination from home-plate umpire Brian O’Nora, who then cleared him to return to the game. Bell emerged from the home dugout to have a discussion with O’Nora — a discussion which quickly got heated. Upset that Schmidt was allowed to remain in the game, Bell got his money’s worth before being tossed.
Schmidt had pitched four scoreless innings prior to the incident. The spin rate on his pitches was up considerably, per Codify Baseball. 69% of Schmidt’s curveballs and sweepers spun at 3,000 RPM’s or faster. During his first outing of the month on May 3, that figure sat at just 10%.
Bell declined to go in depth on the incident after the game, saying it was obvious what happened.
“I’m not gonna talk about it,” Bell said. “I think it was probably obvious what happened, and I’m just gonna leave it at that. It’s not — we don’t benefit from me talking about this, so, I’m not gonna talk about it. But it was obvious what happened.”
Another sticky substance incident involving Yankees
The Yankees have been at the center of a majority of foreign substance scandals this season. Just this past Tuesday, right-hander Domingo German was ejected after hurling three no-hit innings. According to umpire James Hoye, the substance on German’s hand was tackier than rosin.
“The instant I looked at his hand, it was extremely shiny and extremely sticky,” Hoye told a pool reporter, via ESPN. “It’s the stickiest hand I’ve ever felt. My fingers had a hard time coming off his palm.”
German denied Hoye’s accusation.
“It was definitely just the rosin bag,” German said through an interpreter. “It was sweat and the rosin bag. I don’t need any extra help to grab the baseball.”
German received a 10-game suspension from MLB for violating the rules regarding foreign substances.