All you need to know why was Drew Smith suspended by the MLB, and how long will he the suspension reign for Mets pitcher.
The Major League Baseball has issued an official statement confirming that New York Mets outfielder Drew Smith has been suspended for ten games and will be fined. The pitcher has decided not to contest the suspension, thus his 10-game suspension will start with tonight’s game against the New York Yankees.
In the seventh inning of the game against the Yankees on June 13, the first base umpire Bill Miller made the decision to dismiss him from the game. Smith was supposed to enter the game, but he was removed from the field before he could throw a pitch because the umpires suspected that he was tainted with an illegal substance.
An ejection for the presence of a foreign substance results in an automatic 10-game suspension.
Players who are removed from the squad due to being suspended for breaking on-field regulations cannot be replaced. Because Smith is indeed going to serve his suspension, the Mets will have to play for the next week and a half with a roster that has only 25 players.
Additionally, they will be without one of their superior high-leverage arms. The 29-year-old pitcher has thrown 23 2/3 innings and has a 4.18 earned run average. However, over 46 innings pitched the year before, he posted a mark of 3.33, and he struck out batters at a rate that was above average (27.7%). This year, Smith has been responsible for a pair of saves and has held a total of eight leads.
Drew Smith is not the Mets’ first pitcher to get suspended this season
Max Scherzer, another pitcher for the Mets, was suspended for the same reason earlier in the season, thus Drew Smith is not the first pitcher for the Mets to receive a suspension this year. Max Scherzer kept his right palm out in front of him for most of the altercation that took place between him, the home-plate umpire Dan Bellino, and the crew chief Phil Cuzzi during the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in April.
Scherzer went over to the umpires and pleaded his case, telling them on many occasions that the only thing he was using to hold the baseball was rosin. The umpires eventually allowed him to continue pitching. The manager of the Mets, Buck Showalter, was the person standing next to Scherzer. The first time that Scherzer and Bellino came into contact with one another was in the middle of the second inning. It was supposed to be a routine check for sticky substances, which is a technique that has been regular in Major League Baseball ever since the year 2021.
Cuzzi reportedly told Scherzer during that interaction that the stickiness on his hand was excessive, that he needed to wash it off, and that he would be checked one more time before he returned to the mound for the third inning. According to both sides, this conversation took place. When Scherzer came back for the bottom of the fourth inning, Cuzzi halted him once more, which provoked Scherzer to start animatedly debating his argument.
Scherzer was able to continue playing after Cuzzi eventually gave him permission. After about a minute, Cuzzi ejected him from the game for unlawfully using a foreign substance. This provoked additional protestations from Scherzer, until Showalter escorted him away from the commotion. Cuzzi ejected him from the game for inappropriate use of a foreign substance. Scherzer filed a few more appeals after Cuzzi was kicked out of the match.
