Why did a Pirates pitcher throw at Sal Stewart and what did umps say?
Overshadowed by the Pirates' relentless hitting and walking in a 17-7 rout of the Reds was a strange sequence in the 7th inning involving Sal Stewart.
PITTSBURGH – By the time an ugly loss in Pittsburgh was finally over, Cincinnati Reds rookie Sal Stewart said he still wasn’t sure why Pirates pitcher Chris Devenski threw at him in the seventh inning. But the umpire crew chief for the game said the crew believed it knew enough to justify ejecting Devenski from the 17-7 Pirates rout on Saturday night. “We had the situation lead up to it with (Devenski) stepping off the rubber and (Stewart) stepping out of the box,” crew chief Alan Porter, who worked first base in the game, told a pool reporter.
“Still had time and stepped out. After that, (Devenski) stepped up and he fired the pitch and, we believe, threw it at him intentionally. That’s why we ejected him.
” Stewart lost his helmet getting out of the way of the first pitch of the inning, had words with catcher Henry Davis, and peace was quickly restored as home plate ump Willie Traynor intervened — before the four-man crew huddled and made the call to eject Devenski. “I just saw that there were 17 seconds up there, so I just waited a second, called time and the next thing you know the ball was just running to my ribs,” Stewart said. “I really don’t know what happened.
Literally, I have no clue. “No one said anything. I’m glad the umpires took care of it, but I really have no idea.