Michael Pineda Suspended 10 Games After Ejection

After Wednesday night's debacle with New York Yankees pitcher Michael Pineda, a 10-game suspension has been handed down. Pineda was ejected during the second inning of the game against the Boston Red Sox when the umpires inspected him and found pine tar on the pitcher's neck. Pineda had admitted to the substance saying he placed it on his neck because it was an area of his body he touched often while pitching, but also noted that he did not know the amount of which he put on until after he saw the video. Pineda had also said that he did it to get a little extra grip in the weather conditions as he couldn't feel the ball much in the first inning and didn't want to risk losing control of the ball and hitting a batter. The 10 game suspension will mean that Pineda will miss his next two starts for the Yankees and be able to return May 5 when they take on the Los Angeles Angels. He also took full responsibility for the action, but manager Joe Girardi feels it is a good situation and timing for the league to look into a way to help improve a pitcher's grip in certain weather conditions. Some batters understand why pitchers use the pine tar, including Red Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski who said that he likes knowing the pitcher has a good grip of the ball when he steps in the batter box. We'll see if any other news comes from this situation or if the league will take a look at the legality of pine tar to help improve grip.