Joe West creates stir by confiscating cheat sheet from Phillies pitcher
There are no cheat sheets allowed in Joe West's classroom.
The veteran umpire created a stir when he took away a scouting sheet from Philadelphia Phillies reliever Austin Davis in the eighth inning of a game against the Chicago Cubs on Saturday.
(Video courtesy: MLB.com)
"I saw him take it out and I went, 'What the heck is that?'" West said, according to The Canadian Press.
"I told him we don't allow him to carry anything on their glove, person or clothing except in some cases where there's a rain situation we allow them to put a rosin bag in their pocket.
"Other than that they can't have anything on the pitcher."
West called the league office after the game to find out if Davis carrying the card in his pocket was allowed, but he didn't receive proper clarification.
"I didn't want to throw him out," West explained. "I know it's foreign but he's not trying to cheat. Maybe he's trying to get an advantage because he's reading the scouting report, but it wasn't pine tar, it wasn't an emery board, it wasn't whatever.
"In the long run, maybe they'll let him (have the card). Right now, my hands are tied until they say yes or no. Right now, until the office says it's OK to carry this, he can't do it."
Phillies manager Gabe Kapler was confused by West's decision to confiscate the item since this wasn't the first time his team has used cards during a game.
"It's not like he was trying to hide anything," Kapler said during the postgame press conference.
"Obviously, we were using it for a scouting report. Our outfielders use them, some of our infielders use them. Zack Greinke uses it ... it's well-documented.
"Austin Davis is pulling the card out of his pocket on the mound, using it as a reference on how to attack the hitters. I think it's a really good thing for baseball."
The umpire's decision to take the card came one day after Cubs MVP candidate Javier Baez said umpires "need to start talking to us like we're humans" following a frustrating call from West.