While we are focusing on the Stanley Cup playoffs, the MLB is in the midst of quite a bit of controversy. It took to another level during the Canadiens game on Tuesday night because of Max Scherzer.
The one who won 3 Cy Young in his career pretended to undress in front of an official.
To understand how we got there, you have to understand that in recent weeks, the MLB has tightened its policy on sticky substances that could help pitchers.
They decided this because the pitchers are better than ever and an article from SI published in early June shed light on the more or less legal methods that explained this increase in performance.
It was so drastic that one of the best pitchers in the league, Tyler Glasnow, blamed these new restrictions for his injury which will make him miss more than a month. According to him, and several others, by changing their motion so quickly, they increase the risk of injury. We even see confiscated gloves if the color is not the right one.
You should also know that to make sure that the pitchers are not cheating, the referees can check during the game. This is what brings us to Max Scherzer. The Nationals pitcher was already tickled during his first check of the evening, but he went further in his second.
Max Scherzer en a marre
After Phillies manager Joe Girardi asked the referee to check again, Scherzer threw everything to the ground before undoing his belt. He didn’t drop his pants, but he clearly wanted to send a message.
This is incredible.
Joe Girardi asked the umpires to check Max Scherzer for sticky stuff again.
Scherzer’s reaction:
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) June 23, 2021
The Nationals ace is known for his hot temper and it showed when he finished his job in this round. After removing Realmuto on takes, he glared at Girardi. The latter did not like it and he went on the field to confront him. This ultimately led to his dismissal from the game as Scherzer continued to laugh at the situation.
Max Scherzer stares down Joe Girardi, Joe comes out of the dugout and challenges him then gets ejected, Max shows off his glove and hat pic.twitter.com/cjwNfLBHuO
— CJ Fogler #BlackLivesMatter (@cjzero) June 23, 2021
He is not the only one
One sign that this frustration is gaining ground is that we saw a very similar scene later in the evening. This time, it was Sergio Romo of the Oakland A’s, who went so far as to drop his pants.
Apparently Sergio Romo also thinks these umpire checks are ridiculous ???? pic.twitter.com/gHJcXA1rMc
— The Rickey Henderson of Blogs (@RickeyBlog) June 23, 2021
After his match, Scherzer
Apparently Sergio Romo also thinks these umpire checks are ridiculous ???? pic.twitter.com/gHJcXA1rMc
— The Rickey Henderson of Blogs (@RickeyBlog) June 23, 2021
” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”> a expliqué that the current MLB tactics were not the solution to the problem. One thing is certain, the pitchers seem to want to ridicule the league with this move. It’s easy to understand them considering the change overnight. It really is a major league baseball fiasco, which is really not getting attention for the right reasons right now.
