CHICAGO (AP) — Giovanny Gallegos came in to a sticky situation, with the St. Louis Cardinals clinging to a one-run lead and two on in the seventh inning. It quickly became a heated one.
Umpire Joe West ordered him to switch caps because there apparently was sunscreen on the bill. Manager Mike Shildt, thinking his player was unfairly singled out, got ejected during an animated argument.
That overshadowed everything else in the Cardinals’ 4-0 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday.
“This is baseball’s dirty little secret, and it’s the wrong time and the wrong arena to expose it,” Shildt said. “Here’s the deal. First of all, Gio wears the same hat all year. Hats accrue dirt. Hats accrue substances. … Did Gio have some sunscreen at some point in his career to make sure he doesn’t get some kind of melanoma? Possibly. Does he use rosin to help out? Possibly. Are these things that baseball really wants to crack down on? No.”
Tommy Edman homered twice, and the Cardinals avoided a three-game sweep.
Shildt was ejected with one out in the seventh, after Génesis Cabrera hit Yoán Moncada, putting runners on first and second.
The Cardinals brought in Giovanny Gallegos. West, who on Tuesday set Major League Baseball’s record for most games umpired, said second-base ump Dan Bellino noticed a substance on the brim of the pitcher’s cap.
West said Gallegos told him it was sunscreen. Even so, he made the pitcher switch caps before throwing a pitch because “we don’t want anybody to be accused of cheating or any of that stuff.” The cap was sent to the commissioner’s office.
“The whole point of this is we’re trying to protect his pitcher, and he got ejected,” West said.
Shildt, who was tossed for the second time this season, said he appreciated the motivation. But he questioned…
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