Mariners’ Santiago suspended 10 days for foreign substance
Home Plate umpire Phil Cuzzi, right, talks with Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Hector Santiago during the fifth inning in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Sunday, June 27, 2021. Santiago was ejected by Cuzzi. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
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NEW YORK (AP) — Seattle Mariners pitcher Héctor Santiago became the first player disciplined under Major League Baseball’s crackdown on foreign substance, given a 10-game suspension Tuesday.
Michael Hill, the former Marlins general manager who is senior vice president for on-field operations, announced the penalty two days after Santiago was ejected from a game at the Chicago White Sox. Santiago also was fined.
He appealed the decision to MLB special adviser John McHale Jr., and the suspension will be delayed until the appeal is decided.
Santiago, a 33-year-old left-hander, is in his 10th major league season, his first with the Mariners.
Under a crackdown that started June 21, Santiago was checked by umpires as he exited in the fifth inning.
Crew chief Tom Hallion said then that Santiago was ejected for “having a foreign substance that was sticky on the inside palm of his glove.” The pitcher said what the umpires found was a combination of rosin and sweat.
Santiago started this season at Triple-A and made his big league season debut with the Mariners on June 1. He is 1-1 with a 2.65 ERA in nine games.
Seattle Mariners catcher Luis Torrens, right, talks with relief pitcher Hector Santiago during the fifth inning in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Sunday, June 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh) 
Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Hector Santiago kicks the mound during the fifth inning in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Sunday, June 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh) 
Seattle Mariners manager Scott Servais, left, listens to home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi about relief pitcher Hector Santiago, right, during the fifth inning in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Sunday, June 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh) 
Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Hector Santiago walks to the dugout after he was ejected by home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi during the fifth inning in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, Sunday, June 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
