The Plain Facts

Tampa Bay Rays reliever Joel Peralta was ejected Tuesday night for having pine tar on his glove in the eighth inning of a 5-4 win over the Washington Nationals. Peralta played for the Nationals in 2010, and also for the Syracuse Chiefs (the team's Triple-A affiliate) earlier that year when Nats first base coach Trent Jewett was the manager. Davey Johnson initiated the inquiry with home plate umpire Tim Tschida, who looked at the glove, found the pine tar, and made the ejection. Peralta, caught red-handed, tipped his cap to the Nationals as he walked off the field. Judging by precedent and the rulebook, he'll likely be suspended for 10 games.