San Diego Padres Reliever Robert Suárez Suspended for 10 games

San Diego Padres Reliever Robert Suárez Suspended for 10 games

25 August, 2023

Robert Suárez, a reliever for the San Diego Padres, was suspended for 10 games by Major League Baseball on Friday, becoming the sixth pitcher to be punished for using prohibited adhesive substances.

Michael Hill, senior vice president of on-field operations for MLB, announced the penalty.

John McHale Jr., special assistant to baseball commissioner Rob Manfred, heard Suárez’s appeal of the discipline. Any suspension will be postponed pending the outcome of the appeal.

Wednesday, Suárez was ejected for having adhesive substance on his left wrist and arm before throwing a pitch against Miami in the eighth inning. Suárez denied using any prohibited substances, stating that he only wore sunblock on his arm because the game was played during the day.

“We were performing a routine inspection,” said crew supervisor Todd Tichenor. “We deemed it to be too sticky, very sticky, and he was ejected from the game.”

After MLB began clamping down on foreign substances in June 2021, Héctor Santiago of Seattle and Caleb Smith of Arizona were suspended for using adhesive substances.

This season, Mets pitchers Max Scherzer and Drew Smith, along with Yankees pitcher Domingo Germán, were suspended.