Ronel Blanco was enjoying a nice outing against the Oakland A’s on Tuesday, having three clean innings thus far. Four hits, one walk, and four strikeouts had the Houston Astros up 1-0 heading into the bottom half but before getting back to the dugout, a problem with the umpires arose.
As usual, a check of the glove and hands took place but this time, Blanco was stopped. Umpire Laz Diaz took Blanco’s glove and thought there was a foreign substance instead. Oakland color commentator Dallas Braden stuck up for Blanco a bit, saying he may be arguing a mixture of Rosen and sweat built up inside of the glove.
After discussions, the umpiring crew felt there was enough there to eject Blanco and have him hit the showers early. Astros manager Joe Espada was not too thrilled with the decision and everyone on the Houston side looked confused.
Either way, Blanco is not allowed to pitch for the rest of the night. His glove was taken by the umpires and will be inspected after the game by them and others in the Major League Baseball offices in New York. If Blanco is found guilty, he will face a 10-game suspension.
You can check out the entire sequence from Houston here.
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