Astros pitcher Justin Verlander asked the team to bar Detroit Free Press reporter Anthony Fenech (the Tigers beat writer since 2015) from the team's clubhouse on Wednesday night. The Astros, in what was a clear violation of baseball's collective bargaining agreement, agreed.
Astros vice president of communications Gene Dias said Verlander was "adamant" that he would not speak to any credentialed media if Fenech was present. And so three members of Astros security blocked the door into the clubhouse.
The Free Press reported:
[P]reventing a reporter from entering the clubhouse on time could violate Section 2 of the Regular Season Club/Media Relations Guidelines in the collective bargaining agreement, which gives working media access to both clubhouses "no later than 10 minutes following the final out of each game.