Framber Valdez was having a rough night, but the Detroit Tigers pitcher insists he didnโt take his frustrations out on Boston Red Sox batter Trevor Story.
Valdez had given up 10 runs, including back-to-back solo home runs in the previous two at bats, when Story took the plate in the top of the fourth inning on Tuesday at Comerica Park.
What happened next wasnโt intentional โ at least thatโs what Valdez said after the Tigersโ 10-3 loss.
Not everybody believes him.
With his first pitch of the at-bat, Valdez hit Story with a 94-mph fastball in the numbers on the back of the Red Sox shortstopโs jersey. Story wasnโt happy as plate umpire Adam Beck stepped between him and the mound.
The benches cleared and the bullpens emptied, but no punches were thrown and order was quickly restored. Valdez was ejected from the game but later said the situation wasnโt as it may have appeared.
โIt was not intentional,โ Valdez said through an interpreter. โIt might look like it, but it wasnโt. I was trying to throw strikes after the two consecutive home runs. I was trying to go back in the zone and that pitch came out of my hand.โ
Story wasnโt buying it, telling reporters โitโs pretty undisputableโ that Valdez had meant to hit him.
โI was in there ready to hit and it showed up way behind me and off the numbers,โ Story said. โWe all know whatโs what.โ
Interim Red Sox manager Chad Tracy agreed that the hit-by-pitch seemed intentional.
โI thought it was weak, and I thought everybody saw it,โ Tracy said. โTheir side, our side, I think everybody saw it. And yeah, it was weak.โ
While Detroit manager A.J. Hinch said he couldnโt judge his pitcherโs intent, he called the incident โa low moment of a frustrating night.โ
โWe play a really good brand of baseball here. That didnโt feel like it,โ Hinch said. โItโs not judging intent; I have no idea. But I know when you go out on the field and you end up sort of in those confrontations, you usually feel like youโre in your right. And it didnโt feel good being out there.โ
Valdez now faces a possible suspension from MLB, with the Tigers already missing several starting pitchers because of injury.
A two-time All Star, Valdez spent his first eight MLB seasons with the Houston Astros. In his first year with Detroit, Valdez is 2-2 with a 4.57 ERA in eight starts.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.