MLB announcer sounds off on ejection

As the New York Mets looked to secure their 15th win in 21 games, they turned to their closer, Edwin Díaz.

While Díaz has been far from his dominant self after missing all last season, since being reinstated from the injured list, he’s turned a new leaf. And in his previous couple of outings, Díaz has looked the part, recording two saves in the process.

But Díaz was promptly ejected before he could lock down New York’s 5-2 win over the Chicago Cubs on Sunday Night Baseball . During a foreign substance check, the umpiring crew determined that whatever he did or didn’t have on his hand was far too sticky for him to be allowed to stay in the game.

Rather than letting an established veteran wash his hands, Vic Carapazza took matters into his own hands and threw Díaz out. A 10-game suspension now looms, and the appeal process is virtually non-existent. But he clearly did have something on his hands.

As ESPN’s cameras zoomed in on his hands, some sort of residue appeared on them. At the time, David Cone suggested that Díaz could “absolutely” get his hands to look like they did by using the rosin bag and all-natural baseball bat grip, both of which are provided to pitchers and are considered legal substances.

“There’s a look at that right hand,” said Jon ‘Boog’ Sciambi. “I mean, there’s obviously something on there. I was simply pointing out, can you get it to look like with rosin and Pelican Grip?”

“Yes, you can,” Cone said. Absolutely, you can. Rosin has residual on it. It can definitely make your fingers discolored like that.”

And Cone would be correct, as Díaz said he used a combination of rosin, sweat, and dirt as he warmed up in the Wrigley Field bullpen. The Mets’ closer established that this isn’t anything different than he’s done before. He hadn’t used an illegal substance, but whether he used too much of a legal substance certainly begs the question.

“I think it’s the same. They always check me; they let me pitch,” he said. “But today was hotter than earlier in the season, so, I don’t know, they thought it was stickier… I will keep using the same thing because they didn’t find anything on my glove, my hat, my belt.”

Díaz said that the umpiring crew thought he was using an illegal substance, which he was not. But that didn’t prevent Carapazza from essentially calling the New York Mets closer a liar.

The most likely scenario is somewhere in the middle. Maybe Díaz did use a bit more rosin than usual. However, the problem lies in the ambiguity of the current substance check process. It’s difficult to definitively distinguish between an illegal foreign substance and just sweat mixed with rosin, a legal combination.

Here’s the crux of the issue: if rosin is allowed, then shouldn’t Díaz have been given the chance to wash his hands if they felt too sticky? After all, a pitcher needs some level of grip to control a 100 mph fastball. Without it, player safety comes into question.

On the other hand, Cone’s experience as a pitcher adds weight to his analysis. Even without physically examining Díaz’s hand, he understands the potential appearance of rosin and sweat. His ability to translate this knowledge into insightful commentary is what makes him such a valuable asset to the Sunday Night Baseball booth.

Cone’s analysis offered some clarity in a situation where details were scarce.

[ Awful Announcing ]

The post David Cone’s analysis lent credence to Edwin Díaz’s sticky situation appeared first on Awful Announcing .