Astros reliever apologizes to the umps

By Craig CalcaterraApr 16, 2013, 10:32 AM EDT
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You don’t see this very often. Last night Astros reliever Paul Clemens thought a 2-2 pitch was a strikeout. Home plate umpire Paul Emmel thought differently and called it a ball. Clemens was visibly upset and jawed some stuff Emmel’s way.  After the game, however, he apologized:

“Let me take a second to apologize to him and his whole crew. I apologize,” Clemens said. “It was just my competitive nature. … I took the Lord’s name in vain and I apologized.”

If that’s the standard, Greg Maddux is going to spend eternity in a very bad place for all of those F-bombs he used to launch.

Nice on Clemens, though.

Zac Rosscup throws immaculate inning, lands on DL

Abbie Parr/Getty Images
By Bill BaerAug 20, 2018, 10:07 PM EDT
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A day after throwing an immaculate inning — getting through an inning on three consecutive strikeouts with nine pitches — against the Mariners, Dodgers reliever Zac Rosscup was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a left calf strain. The move made room on the 25-man roster for Kenley Jansen, who is back after missing some time due to an irregular heartbeat.

Rosscup pitched the ninth inning of Sunday’s 12-1 win over the Mariners. He struck out Kyle Seager, Ryon Healy, and Cameron Maybin on three pitches each. Rosscup is the fourth pitcher to throw an immaculate inning this season, joining Kevin Gausman, Max Scherzer, and German Marquez. 2018’s four immaculate innings is still far behind 2017’s record of eight.

Rosscup has pitched only 6 2/3 innings in the majors this year. He has yielded five runs (all earned) on seven hits and a walk with 10 strikeouts. He missed a significant amount of time earlier this season due to a blister on his left middle finger.