“I was scared to death,” Justin Steele SHAKEN after sticky substance check during game against Pirates

Umpire Viz Carapazza halts Pirates vs. Cubs game to check Justin Steele for sticky substance use.

“I was scared to death,” Justin Steele SHAKEN after sticky substance check during game against Pirates

Justin Steele [Image Credit: Marquee Sports Network]

Chicago Cubs pitcher Justin Steele admits being “scared” after umpires checked him for sticky substance use during team’s game against Pittsburgh Pirates. The four umpires took to the mound before the start of the third inning on Tuesday.

Umpires coming to check for substance or even for other causes is not a welcome site to the players as there’s always a high chance of getting into trouble during games. Even a potential ejection is not out of the picture.

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Umpire Vic Carapazza later sent the 29-year-old to the dugout to wash his hands to eliminate any doubts they might have had. While he got the cleared signal from the authorities, the experience itself took a toll on the player.

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Yeah, you could probably see me shaking. I was scared. They were saying you can’t have rosin on your non-throwing arm. I really didn’t know that, so they told me to go wipe it off of my non-throwing arm.
Justin Steele as per Tony Andracki of Marquee Sports Network.

It was a tense few moments for Steele as he admitted being “scared to death” even though he knew he did nothing wrong. While MLB permits the use of resin, it is not allowed to be used on the non-throwing arm.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell told reporters that it wasn’t a big issue. The umpires thought Steele was using resin on the non-throwing arm, so they asked him to rinse it off “no big deal.” On an off note, Carapazza was the same umpire who ejected Edwin Diaz for sticky substance use back in June.

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Edwin Diaz was suspended for 10 games by same umpire in June

In June, New York Mets pitcher Edwin Diaz got suspended by Major League Baseball for a violation of using an illegal substance during the game. The camera caught his hands having black spots which the player said to be rosin. However, umpire Vic Caparazza had a different view on it.

Edwin Diaz [Image Credit: Reuters]
Edwin Diaz [Image Credit: Reuters]

Caparazza’s ejection led the player to get suspended for 10 games, and he later returned to the lineup in July against the Pirates. The MLB said that it may have been an illegal substance use or can even be rosin which was used too much, and it defied the set rules.

Diaz did not challenge the authorities and went to complete his suspension. After return he said was a “little anxious at first” after he was thrown out of the game in June. 

I left this behind that day. I apologized to my teammates after the game. I came back today and did my job and I want to keep doing my job.
Edwin Diaz as per John Perrotto of AP News.

When asked why he didn’t challenge the MLB, he said, “We just didn’t think it worth getting in a battle with,” and wanted to move on. MLB is strict on illegal substance use and has over the decades ejected players with hefty suspensions. 

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