HOUSTON.- The opener of the AstrosRonel Blanco, received a 10-game suspension on Wednesday for violating the rule on the use of illegal substances in the glove after being ejected from the game against the Oakland Athletics on Tuesday.
The suspension was announced by Michael Hill, Major League Baseball's vice president of field operations. The punishment goes into effect starting Wednesday night, unless the Dominican right appeals. It also includes a fine, the amount of which was not disclosed.
Blanco was ejected early in the fourth inning of a 2-1 win over Oakland on Tuesday after umpires detected a substance that first base umpire Erich Bacchus described as “the stickiest thing I've ever felt in a game.” glove”.
Third base umpire Laz Díaz ejected Blanco after checking the Dominican's glove after he made a pitch in the fourth inning. The umpires, the pitcher and Houston manager Joe Espada spent several minutes on the mound discussing the situation before the pitcher was ejected.
Bacchus mentioned that nothing was found in Blanco's glove when he checked him in the first inning, but that he detected the substance when he did a second check before the fourth.
No admission of guilt in Houston:
Blanco denied using an illegal substance.
“Maybe it was the resin I put on my left arm,” he said. “And because of the sweat it went to the glove and maybe that's what they found.”
The 30-year-old right-hander is in his third season in the majors, all in an Astros uniform. In his first eight appearances of 2024, Blanco posted a 2.09 ERA, with a 4-0 record and a 1.05 WHIP.
