The Mets took their second rubber match of the year on Wednesday. This one came in Los Angeles against the Dodgers and old friend Noah Syndergaard. Despite improving to 5-1 on their current West Coast road trip, there were a few extra fireworks thanks to Max Scherzer getting ejected for “sticky stuff” before the fourth inning. Former big-league pitcher, Jerry Blevins, wasn’t having it.
While on SNY Wednesday night, Blevins took aim at Major League Baseball and the Commissioner’s Office, saying this is their problem for not fixing the baseballs in the first place. Check it out:
"You better have video proof of him applying a foreign substance onto his fingers. This shouldn't be a subjective thing."@jerryblevins had some strong thoughts on Max Scherzer's ejection: https://t.co/ZIhpfTYMoN
➡️ Tri-State @Cadillac pic.twitter.com/G2nW1owEua
— SNY (@SNYtv) April 20, 2023
This has been going on since at least 2007. At least! And probably way before then, too. Blevins made a lot of great points, and it’s even better because he’s also speaking from experience. It’s a shame that MLB still hasn’t fixed this problem, which has been going on for close to two decades since the former reliever’s own experience. But we all know it’s not surprising.
Also, don’t you just love Andy Martino trying to play devil’s advocate? Yea, Blevins wasn’t having any of that, either. And I don’t blame him one bit.
What I found most interesting here is Blevins didn’t focus too much on the situation between Scherzer and the umpires. He’s pointing a finger right at the league for letting this problem compound itself over time. Now, all pitchers across the league are in this situation because MLB is trying to put on a bandaid instead of fixing the actual problem.
Based on what we can see from how the rule is actually worded, Scherzer may not have a choice but to serve his suspension. We’ll see how things go when he and the Mets plead their side of the case in a hearing, though.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
