NEW YORK — The saga featuring Rhys Hoskins and the New York Mets continued Sunday morning with the announcement of two suspensions.
Major League Baseball suspended Mets reliever Yohan Ramírez for three games for intentionally throwing at Hoskins, the Milwaukee Brewers’ designated hitter, on Saturday. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza also received a one-game suspension.
Mendoza will serve his suspension Sunday, the league announced. Just two games into his managerial career, Mendoza has been hit with a suspension.
Ramirez filed an appeal, and his discipline will wait until the appeal process is complete.
On Saturday, Ramírez was ejected for throwing behind Hoskins in the seventh inning. By then, Hoskins had already delivered three hits, including a home run, and four RBIs.
Ramírez, Mendoza and Brewers manager Pat Murphy each said they didn’t think there was any malicious intent.
“I was trying to throw my sinker inside,” Ramírez said, “and sometimes when I try to get it too inside, the ball just runs. In this weather, I didn’t have the grip that I want.”
Hoskins didn’t sound as convinced.
“Big-leaguers don’t miss by eight feet,” he said of the wayward pitch. “Whether it was on purpose or not is really not for me to decide. But this game has had a way of policing itself for many, many years. So let’s focus on doing it the right way if we’re going to do that.”
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On Friday, Hoskins’ hard slide into second base angered the Mets’ Jeff McNeil. The infielder immediately started yelling and pointing at Hoskins, prompting the benches to clear. The Mets contended that Hoskins’ slide was later than it should have been and that it was not the first time Hoskins had gone into second base like that on McNeil.
On Saturday, the crowd at Citi Field continuously booed Hoskins each time he came to bat. By the fourth time, a runner was on base when Ramírez’s first pitch to Hoskins sailed behind him.
“It seems to be bad baseball on their part to try to put a runner on second base with less than two outs in a semi-close game where you’re losing,” Hoskins said of the timing. “I’ll take the Brewers being in a better position to win the game every single time.”
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(Photo: Christopher Pasatieri / Getty Images)
Daniel Miller is a sports fanatic who lives and breathes athletics. His coverage spans from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis for sports enthusiasts.
