Max Scherzer Suspended 10 Games Over Foreign Substance Rule

As a result of the suspension, the Mets, already missing three of their projected starters, will lose a fourth for two turns through the rotation. And Scherzer, who is earning $43.3 million in salary this year, stands to lose roughly $2.67 million in salary, plus a fine. He will also get a permanent mark on a résumé that likely has him on track for a place in the Hall of Fame after he is retired.

Before Scherzer said he would accept the suspension, Boras said that M.L.B. must determine an objective, rather than a subjective, method to determine how much tack a pitcher can use.

“No one can explain what is too sticky,” Boras said via text Thursday after the suspension was issued. “There are no units of stickiness to quantify. How do you appropriately enforce. MLB attempts to level the playing field by using standards that are not measurable.”

He added, referencing Cuzzi’s previous ejections of players in similar circumstances: “Further one umpire has a stickiness standard that is different than all other umpires. In the past 3 years no other umpire (over 95) has attempted to apply this standard.”

At the end of his text, Boras summed things up, saying, “This reminds me of local wine taster… he likes what likes.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/20/sports/baseball/max-scherzer-suspended.html