Houston pitcher Framber Valdez claimed that he didn’t purposely confuse his catcher, Cesar Salazar, and strike him with a ball deliberately during the Astros' 7-1 loss to the New York Yankees on Wednesday.
In the fifth inning at Daikin Park, Valdez gave up a grand slam after ignoring a signal from catcher Cesar Salazar to step off before throwing the pitch that prompted Yankees outfielder Trent Grisham to hit it over the fence.
In the next at-bat, Valdez mistakenly hit Salazar in the chest with a pitch that slipped past both of them. Salazar looked stunned with this action; he removed his helmet and glowered at Valdez and walked away.
Following the game, Valdez maintained that the action was not purposely done.
Both he and Salazar were immediately called into the manager’s office after the game, and Valdez extended his apologies to Salazar.
Salazar backed that up, stating he and Valdez have shared a great bond.
Even though it didn’t appear ideal at the moment, both players insist that it was nothing more than a misunderstanding in a tense situation.
