The umpiring crew at Great American Ball Park on Friday gave New York Yankees starter Clarke Schmidt two opportunities to avoid an ejection, but Cincinnati Reds Manager David Bell wasn’t as lucky.
Returning to the mound for the fifth inning, Schmidt was surrounded by all four umpires during a foreign substance inspection on his glove and his hands.
Following the meeting with the umpires, which apparently identified some type of sticky substance, Schmidt returned to the visiting clubhouse to wash his glove and/or his hands after pitching four scoreless innings. As everyone waited for Schmidt to return, the umpiring crew met with Bell and Yankees Manager Aaron Boone.
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After Schmidt returned to the field, he was cleared by home-plate umpire Brian O’Nora to take the mound after a brief inspection of his glove and hands. As Schmidt threw his warmup pitches to prepare for the inning, Bell came out of the dugout to speak with O’Nora and was ejected after a lengthy discussion.
MLB began enforcement of foreign substances in 2021, which includes a 10-game suspension for offenders. Friday’s incident came three days after Yankees pitcher Domingo Germán was ejected and subsequently suspended for 10 games because he violated “the prohibitions on foreign substances.” New York Mets starter Max Scherzer also received a 10-game suspension for the same reason earlier this year.
A memo sent to teams in March about foreign substance inspections noted “a player who possesses or applies foreign substances in violation of the playing rules is subject to immediate ejection from the game and will be suspended automatically.”
Schmidt pitched five innings, permitting two runs on five hits and two walks. The spin rates on all his pitches, according to Statcast, were up from his season average.
It was the second time Bell was ejected this season.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Yankees’ Clarke Schmidt inspected for sticky stuff, David Bell ejected