Blue Jays pitcher Jos¨¦ Berr¨ªos accused Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh of relaying pitch types to Raleigh¡¯s Seattle teammates from second base during Saturday¡¯s game at Rogers Centre -- an allegation Raleigh denies.
¡°They thought I was relaying,¡± Raleigh told MLB.com¡¯s Daniel Kramer after the Mariners¡¯ 8-4 win in 12 innings. ¡°I wasn't.¡±
Berr¨ªos confronted Raleigh after the top of the fourth inning, causing both benches to clear. Berr¨ªos told MLB.com¡¯s Keegan Matheson he didn¡¯t intend to escalate the situation but wanted to prevent opposing hitters from having a potential edge.
¡°I didn¡¯t feel like the benches were going to go out, but between the hitter and I, it¡¯s a war,¡± Berr¨ªos said. ¡°I am there by myself and I know that hitters can take advantage of many people. As a pitcher, I can¡¯t let that happen.¡±
Raleigh went 2-for-3 with three walks in the 12-inning contest, recording both hits (an infield single and a double) off Berr¨ªos. The catcher reached second in the fourth inning after his single and a walk to Luke Raley, at which point Berr¨ªos suspected him of relaying signs.
¡°When some people are trying to fight with us on the field, I don¡¯t respect that and I don¡¯t like that,¡± Berr¨ªos said. ¡°I was trying to stand up for myself, but also my teammates.¡±
Raleigh pointed out that Rowdy Tellez, the next hitter to come up, looked ¡°way off balance¡± as Tellez struck out for the inning¡¯s second out. (Dylan Moore popped out in foul ground to end the frame.) Still, Raleigh said he understood Berr¨ªos¡¯ reaction to the perceived slight.
¡°I didn't have the pitches,¡± Raleigh said. ¡°But that's just how it is. I'd want my pitchers doing the same thing if somebody thought they were tipping."
Blue Jays manager John Schneider called stealing signs and passing on pitch information ¡°fair game,¡± but he too backed up Berr¨ªos¡¯ ire.
¡°I like when our guys are sticking up for themselves,¡± Schneider said.