CHICAGO — New York Mets closer Edwin Díaz faces a 10-game suspension after being ejected from the team’s 5-2 win over the Chicago Cubs on Sunday night.
The right-hander entered the game in the ninth to try to seal the victory for the Mets, but was thrown out by third base umpire Vic Carapazza before throwing a pitch after an inspection of his glove and throwing hand.
Díaz and manager Carlos Mendoza said the umpire said he thought the pitcher had too much mixture of rosin, sweat and dirt on his throwing hand.
“The rules are the rules and they made the decision to expel him,” Mendoza said.
Carapazza, the team leader, said in a pool report after the match that “it definitely wasn’t rosin or sweat” on Díaz’s hand.
“We checked thousands of them,” Carapazza said. “I know what that feeling is. It was very sticky.
Díaz, who said he was “really surprised” by the expulsion, was unsure whether to appeal the suspension.
“I always use the same thing,” Díaz said. “I rub rosin and sweat and put my hand in the dirt a little bit to grab the ball.”
He is the third Mets pitcher to be ejected for such an infraction in the past year.
Drew Smith, who was ejected and suspended 10 games last year for a similar infraction, got two outs in place of Díaz. Jake Diekman then came in and retired pinch hitter Patrick Wisdom for his third save for the Mets, who have won four straight series.
New York has won 10 of 13 and is 13-6 in June and may need to find a temporary closer for the next two weeks. The Mets begin a two-game series against the visiting Yankees on Tuesday before hosting Houston for three games.
“Listen, we’ve been through a lot this year,” Mendoza said. “We’ll find a way out of this, you know? We’re going to continue to put the pieces together and, yes, the guys are going to have to step up. And I’m pretty confident that we’ll have guys here that will be able to get us to the finish line when he’s out.
News Source : www.nbcnews.com
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