Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Framber Valdez found himself in hot water after hitting Boston Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story with a pitch, leading to a bench-clearing confrontation. Even his own manager, A.J. Hinch, did not defend his actions.
During Tuesday night's game at Comerica Park, Valdez gave up back-to-back home runs in the span of three pitches, giving the Red Sox a 10-2 lead. Frustrated, he then hit Story in the back with the first pitch of his at-bat. Home plate umpire Adam Beck intervened as an irate Story confronted Valdez, and both benches emptied.
After order was restored, Valdez was ejected from the game. Hinch expressed disappointment in the incident. "We play a really good brand of baseball here," Hinch told reporters. "That didn't feel like it. I know when you go out and you are in those confrontations, you usually feel like you are in your right. It didn't feel good being out there."
Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy believed Valdez acted intentionally. "Yes, I do think it was intentional," Tracy said. "I thought it was weak, and I thought everybody saw it. Their side, our side, I think everybody saw it. And yeah, it was weak."
Valdez, however, denied any intent. "It was not intentional. It was not on purpose. It might look like that, but it wasn't," Valdez said through a translator. "I consider the ejection completely unfair given that, first of all, they should have given me a warning. And of course if it was on purpose, then I do it a second time or a third time, of course, I'm getting ejected."
Notably, social media users pointed out that among Valdez's 694 pitches this season, the one that hit Story was his first four-seam fastball. Valdez is in his first season with the Tigers after eight years with the Houston Astros, having signed a three-year, $115-million US contract. He holds a 2-2 record with a 4.57 ERA in eight starts.
