Mike Rizzo Rips Joe Girardi Following Max Scherzer Accusation

Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer threw five solid innings in a 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies last night. However, his performance on the mound was overshadowed by an incident regarding Phillies manager Joe Girardi and a request to check for foreign substances.

Overall, Scherzer was checked three times throughout the contest by the umpiring crew. Girardi made the request the final time and Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo is not happy about it.

Rizzo took to Sports Junkies on Wednesday morning to deliver his thoughts on the entire situation. He ripped into Girardi and said that he believes the Phillies manager was simply trying to throw Scherzer off his game and disrupt his rhythm.

Girardi claims he that he witnessed Scherzer wiping his head more than usual and wanted to do what was best for his club by asking for a check. Well, Rizzo doesn't think that qualifies for a probable cause.

"Gamesmanship has nothing to do with substances. He had no probable cause to ask for it. The umps shouldn't have allowed it. But it happened and you have to deal with it. This is what we're going to have to deal with"

- Mike Rizzo

Scherzer was obviously upset at the check as he threw down his hat and glove and even started unbuttoning his pants in an act of frustration. He walked off the mound after the inning concluded staring down Girardi on the opposing bench before the manager walked out on the field and got ejected.

There is no doubt that situations like these are going to start popping up across the MLB as commissioner Rob Manfred attempts to crack down on the use of foreign substances. Hopefully the league office can keep things under control as the sport of baseball enters a new era of pitching.

Sign up for FanDuel Sportsbook today and get your first bet risk free for up to $1,000!

Larry Rupp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Larry Rupp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username phillyfan424. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.