thelesterlee
New York Mets closer, Edwin Diaz, was thrown out of Sunday’s game before he even got to the mound. With the Mets up 5-2 and Diaz coming into the finish off the Chicago Cubs, an umpire took the game out of his hands after somehow hawk-eying illegal substances on Diaz’s fingers from the bullpen.
Here’s how it went down:
Edwin Diaz was ejected for having a substance on his pitching hand 😳
(via @JomboyMedia)
pic.twitter.com/YbsnboDOHB— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 24, 2024
All I see is a brown man getting roughed up by the police on his way to work. Just another day in Chicago, I reckon.
His ejection earns him an automatic 10-game suspension and his loss was instantly felt as the Mets needed to burn two relievers—first Drew Smith followed by Jake Diekman after a Dansby Swanson single—to get out of Chicago with the W.
Here’s what Edwin Diaz told ESPN after the game:
“I use the same thing always. I rub rosin, swear, and I put my hand on the dirt a little bit because I need to have some grip on the ball. So that’s what I was explaining to them. But they said it was too much stick. I understood, but at the end of the day I was using rosin, sweat and put my hand on the dirt.”
If Diaz says he did what he always does before going out there then I choose to believe him.
Bold move for Edwin DÃaz to think he’s getting away with this. pic.twitter.com/sUfSvM7un6
— Christopher Kamka (@ckamka) June 24, 2024
Okay, yea, sure, it may look like Diaz has like, the stickiest fingers on Earth like his hands look like a Rolling Stones album. Either Edwin Diaz was coming down from the concessions with two bare handfuls of cotton candy or he was about to cheat like an NBA superstar in Miami but I’m, uh, going to believe it was the cotton candy.
This sticky rule is silly to begin with when Major League Baseball could manufacture balls with stick already on them like they do in Japan instead of attempting to eyeball some made-up threshold of apparent stickiness but Rob Manfred hasn’t made a smart decision since becoming the commissioner.
Anyway, the Mets will be without their star closer for the next 10 days.
How will the Mets survive the loss of Edwin Diaz?
This could be an opportunity for New York to call up one of their young studs from the minors like Christian Scott or Jose Butto, who are dominating AAA and could easily provide a few good innings of relief in Diaz’s absence.
Jose Butto, specifically, has truly been lights out:
Jose Butto has thrown 32.1 innings in 6 starts since being sent to Triple-A Syracuse
He had one bad start where he allowed 7 runs in 3.2 innings
In his other 5 starts, here are his lines:
0 ER in 6 IP
0 ER in 5 IP
2 ER in 6 IP
1 ER in 5.2 IP
1 ER in 6 IPHe pitched last night
— Danny Abriano (@DannyAbriano) June 22, 2024
This may be an opportunity for the Mets to unleash Butto onto the world and maybe move Tylor Megill into the bullpen to let him freely throw 100mph without worrying about preserving his arm for 6+ innings.
Meanwhile, Edwin Diaz and I can work on our evidence to place before the Supreme Court. We will not stand for this injustice.
#FreeEdwinDiaz.
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Do you agree Edwin Diaz is innocent? Leave a comment below. Respond on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. Or shoot me an email at Deadseriousmailbag@gmail.com. Let’s chat, bay-beeeee. Let me know if you think stick stuff should be legal should we can start a petition.
