Seattle Mariners reliever Hector Santiago made headlines when he became the first player to be ejected from a game after failing the new league mandated foreign substance checks. He and his manager, Scott Servais, claimed that the substance in question on his glove was a mixture of rosin and sweat, something that he cannot control as rosin is legal and is provided on the mound. Nonetheless, Santiago was handed a ten game suspension, which he is appealing.
On Friday, he took matters literally into his own hands. Upon taking the mound in the eighth inning, Santiago grabbed the rosin bag, walked to the Mariners’ dugout, and tossed the bag within.
Hector Santiago entering the game for the Mariners... just grabbed the rosin bag off the back of the mound, took it over to the Mariners dugout and tossed it in.
— Curtis Crabtree (@Curtis_Crabtree) July 3, 2021
Umpires checked Santiago before he ever threw a pitch, which brought Scott Servais out to exchange words...
Seattle Mariners reliever Hector Santiago takes matters into his own hands
That display did not exactly help his cause. Santiago was checked before throwing a pitch, prompting words from Servais with the umpires. He was again checked at the end of the inning, because that first check obviously was not enough.
He certainly did not seem to need any additional help on Friday night. Santiago struck out three batters, allowing one hit in the inning as he fired 13 of his 19 pitches for strikes. The umpire’s suspicions, and his removal of the rosin bag, did not impact his performance at all.
Santiago has emerged as a key part of the Mariners’ surprising run of success this season. He has posted a 2.50 ERA and a 1.167 WHiP over his 18 innings, striking out 26 batters with just seven walks. As the Mariners look to continue their surprising run of success, he could be a key part of their fortunes.
Nonetheless, he will be under heavy scrutiny. Even if he is able to get the suspension overturned, just the fact that he was ejected and faced such discipline will cause others to look askance at his performance. For at least one night, Santiago did what he could to alleviate any suspicion.
Hector Santiago claims that the mystery substance on his glove was a mixture of rosin and sweat. The Seattle Mariners’ reliever made sure that issue would not happen again.