Mets puzzled as Drew Smith suspension marks team's fourth of 2023: 'We're all very frustrated'

NEW YORK — The Mets have another sticky situation on their hands. 

Specifically, the situation is on reliever Drew Smith’s hands. Smith was ejected in the seventh inning of Tuesday's loss against the Yankees for having sticky hands. MLB on Wednesday officially served him with a 10-game suspension and an undisclosed fine for "violating the prohibitions on foreign substances." Smith chose not to appeal, so his suspension began today before the Subway Series finale at Citi Field.

Smith, who had yet to throw a single pitch at the time of his on-field ejection, was bewildered by crew chief umpire Bill Miller’s decision. He asked all of his teammates huddled around him at the edge of the infield dirt to check his hands and confirm they weren’t actually sticky. He also made sure an MLB official inside the Mets dugout checked his hands. According to Smith, that official laughed and said his hands weren’t sticky. By then, it was too late — Miller’s decision, however subjective, had been made. 

"Really surprised because I haven’t done anything different all year," Smith said on Tuesday. "Sweat and rosin. I don’t know what else to say. Nothing changed. I think the process is so arbitrary. It can change from one crew to the other. I think that’s the main issue. It just sucks for the team. Not having a guy for 10 days and being a man down for the roster spot."

Technically, Smith will be out of action for 12 days because the Mets have an off day this Thursday and next. The off days do not count toward Smith’s suspension, and the Mets will be forced to play their next 10 games down a pitcher from their usual 13 arms on the staff.

"I think if something’s sticky, it’s illegal," Miller told a pool reporter on Tuesday. "They cannot manipulate the rosin. They can't use foreign substance. I don't know what was on his hand. But his hand was sticky to the touch, where my hand stuck to his hand."

As it is, the Mets' bullpen has struggled to find consistency beyond veteran reliever David Robertson. New York’s 4.27 bullpen ERA ranks 20th in MLB. Every arm in the relief corps has been pushed into a higher leverage role to make up for the loss of closer Edwin Díaz, who is expected to miss the entire season after tearing the patellar tendon in his right knee in March. Smith, too, has been asked to come into higher leverage situations than he otherwise would.

During his suspension, the Mets figure to lean more heavily on fellow relievers Brooks Raley and Jeff Brigham. Raley, a 34-year-old southpaw who was traded from the Rays this past December, recently returned from the injured list for a bout with elbow inflammation. He has a 2.82 ERA and one save in 22.1 innings and 27 relief appearances this season. Brigham has already been trusted in high-leverage situations, albeit to varying results. The righty has a 3.75 ERA in 24 innings this year.

Smith joined Max Scherzer, Dylan Bundy (Triple-A Syracuse) and Eric Orze (Triple-A Syracuse) as the fourth Met to be suspended for sticky hands this season. Yankees right-hander Domingo Germán is the only other MLB pitcher to be disciplined for sticky hands this year. There have been seven suspensions overall between the majors and the minors for foreign substances, and four of them belong to the Mets. It’s a curious development, to say the least.

"I don’t try to get into those conspiracy theories," Mets manager Buck Showalter said. "But I’m also alert. I can do the math."

Showalter was asked whether he believes the Mets are being targeted in part because the skipper asked for a foreign-substance inspection on Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove’s shiny ear during last year’s wild-card series. Showalter doesn’t believe that’s the case.

"I look in the mirror and go, ‘OK, are we doing something wrong that we need to fix?’ That’s my first thought," the longtime skipper said. "Look in the mirror. Instead of it always being someone else’s fault, somebody’s singling you out, are you doing something wrong? That’s where I start with it." 

For Smith’s part, he and the Mets clubhouse were frustrated with the ejection, and ensuing suspension, but they were more bothered by MLB’s lack of uniformity on the matter. The assessment of just how sticky a pitcher’s hand can be, either by using a legal substance like rosin or by a foreign substance like Spider Tack, is entirely up to the crew chief of that game. The ejection, like in Smith’s and Orze’s case, can even happen before a pitcher takes the mound. 

Both Smith and Scherzer on Tuesday urged MLB to look at a pitcher’s spin rates to determine whether his hands are too sticky. 

"That’s the frustrating part, it changes from crew to crew," Smith said. "If there were set guidelines, or you can even monitor spin rates. I feel like my spin rate has been pretty consistent. That’s an easier way to go about things. If a guy’s spin rate jumps up 300, 400, obviously he’s using something. I didn’t even get a chance to throw a pitch tonight, so nobody will know."

Though Smith felt strongly about having clean hands, he decided not to appeal and begin his suspension right away in part because the Mets can use their two off days this week to their advantage by making sure the bullpen is rested while they play with an arm short.

The other reason he didn't appeal was the same reason Scherzer, who was suspended in April for too-sticky hands, didn't argue his case: Many players feel MLB's appeal process is set up in such a way that the discipline is not even worth disputing. The appeal goes through an MLB official, not a neutral arbitrator. In other words, Smith's hands would be tied behind his back before even arguing his case.

Scherzer also pointed out that this crackdown on pitchers is dangerous for the sport. 

"Look at tonight," he said Tuesday. "I threw a fastball up and in and it hit [Giancarlo] Stanton in the elbow. Thank god I had enough grip, you know? If I had less grip and you keep cracking down on me, the ball’s at his head. This is a dangerous issue to sit there and keep cracking down on pitchers because we need grip to be able to throw the baseball. If not, it ends up at the hitter’s head. 

"This isn’t just a black-and-white issue. This is a gray issue and it’s complex. I know we’re all very frustrated because it doesn’t appear that Drew violated any rule."

Deesha Thosar is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets for three-and-a-half seasons as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. She never misses a Rafael Nadal match, no matter what country or time zone he’s playing in. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.