In mockery of the MLB’s so-called “sticky stuff” screenings, Oakland A’s reliever Sergio Romo undid his belt and lowered his pants below his buttocks when approached by an umpire Tuesday night.
A couple hours earlier, Nationals star Max Scherzer sarcastically undid his belt in response to Phillies manager Joe Girardi demanding the ace be screened a third time during their game.
… Welcome to Day 2 of the MLB’s new foreign substance policy.
On Monday, umpires began checking pitchers across the majors for performance-enhancing sticky substances, which MLB is desperately trying to eliminate from the game in order to generate more offense.
Since MLB’s updated guidelines took effect Monday, no pitchers have been caught with the banned substances.
The check-ins occur in between innings, last a few seconds and usually end without any drama.
But that changed Tuesday, when tensions quickly heightened between a fiery Scherzer and Girardi.
Things came to a head when, after closing out the fifth inning with a strikeout, the 36-year-old Scherzer stared down and taunted Girardi. The former Yankees manager was ejected after trying to confront Scherzer, who got the last laugh with Washington coming out on top, 3-2.
As for the 38-year-old Romo, he appeared visibly upset when approached by an umpire after giving up a run in the eighth inning.
The Romo show lasted only a few seconds before the three-time champion with San Francisco, returned to the Oakland dugout en route to a 13-6 win.