Astros pitcher Framber Valdez’s strange hand rubbing is not a concern for the Phillies.

In response to rumors on social media that Houston starting Framber Valdez was up to anything shady during a strong victory in Game 2 of the World Series, Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson says he isn’t concerned about the left-peculiar hander’s hand rubbing.

Videos of Valdez caressing the ball between pitches and swiping his left thumb across his right palm have been making the rounds online. The Astros won 5-2, even the Series at one win each thanks to Valdez’s shutout pitching into the seventh inning.

“Nobody should think of it as anything, like, in the wrong way,” Valdez said. “I do it out in the open. But it’s all tendencies I do. I do it throughout the game. Maybe distract the hitter a little bit from what I’m doing. Like maybe, ‘Look at me, rubbing different things,’ and not think about the pitch that I’m going to throw. I’ve been doing it all season.

Thomson claimed that although the Philadelphia dugout saw what Valdez was doing, they were unconcerned that he was putting an unnatural material on the ball.

In 6 1/3 innings for his sixth postseason victory, Valdez gave up four hits and one run while striking out nine batters. That equals Pedro Martinez’s record for the most playoff victories by a Dominican Republic-born pitcher.

New York Mets manager Buck Showalter asked officials to check San Diego Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove for unlawful goop during Game 3 of an NL wild-card series. The right-hander was thoroughly examined, including his extraordinarily shining ears, but nothing illegal was discovered.

During the 2021 season, there was a rise in grip aid suspicions, which prompted Major League Baseball to take action by enforcing in-game umpire checks.

Thomson claimed that in addition to the regular umpire checks, it also helped to know that the Phils seen Valdez acting similarly when he pitched against them on October 5 in Houston. The left-hander for the Astros struck out 10 over five innings without allowing a run.

One of the unconventional things Valdez likes to do when he pitches, according to him, is to rub his hands together. He switched his glove and spikes midway through his Saturday outing, and it turns out that he also changed a few other things.

He claimed that he typically wears different spikes for his warm-up and game runs. He made the choice to begin the game that day with the ones he warmed up in. He played a lengthy inning, and all he could think about was, “You know what, I’m going to change everything.” I’m going to change out my cleats, belt, and glove. And they are only a few of our characteristics as Dominicans, things we do to maintain a free attitude.

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