John Farrell seeks compromise in baseball’s erratic stance on doctoring the ball
Baseball players have been doctoring the ball from the game’s inception. Whether that’s to gain a competitive advantage or just to get a better grip on a pitch is up for debate, but a pair of recent suspensions in Major League Baseball have Red Sox manager John Farrell calling for a compromised solution.
“I would like to see an approved substance pitchers can use,’’ Farrell said, as quoted by ESPN and the Boston Herald. “I think any time a game loses players for eight to 10 games, I think it makes us as an industry look within.’’
A pair of big-league relief pitchers, Baltimore’s Brian Matusz and Milwaukee’s Will Smith, were suspended eight games by MLB after umpires discovered a foreign substance on their arms during games. Both players are appealing their suspensions.
The Red Sox have run into controversy around the subject of doctoring the ball in recent years, with Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester being questioned on seperate occasions in 2013. New York Yankees pitcher Michael Pineda was suspended 10 games last season after umpires discovered pine tar on his neck in a game against the Red Sox.
On WEEI Wednesday morning, former Red Sox ace Curt Schilling was asked if there was a pitcher’s equivalent to an NFL quarterback preferring footballs that are prepared and feel a certain way. Schilling agreed wholeheartedly.
“Absolutely. You make your living with that little, round thing,’’ Schilling said. “I can get a box of a dozen balls, close my eyes and tell you that one feels like a watermelon and one feels like a pea. There’s that much sensitivity to it.’’
With the Deflategate scandal placing unprecedented emphasis on the handling of NFL footballs leading up to a game, baseball has some company in the debate over where the line is between gamesmanship and cheating. Former Red Sox infielder Alex Cora said on ESPN Baseball Tonight that applying substances to the ball was commonplace throughout MLB.
“As a defensive player, I knew that there were a lot of guys doing it to take an advantage,’’ Cora said. “I laugh sometimes when they just say they want to have a grip, they don’t want to hit guys.’’
Watch: “Learning How to Cheat’’ on Baseball Tonight
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Cora detailed ways other players could and did subtly apply substances to the ball on pickoff plays or on tosses from the catcher back to the pitcher. Former Oakland Athletics pitcher Dallas Braden, also on the Baseball Tonight panel, explained how simple it was to apply a mixture of rosin and sunscreen to his arm and then transfer that substance to the baseball without being obvious. Braden added that he learned as early as spring training how to apply substances to the baseball, and he developed a routine to maintain his edge on the mound.
“In between innings, I’d go to the lineup as I always do, check out who my next victims are going to be, and then I go into the bathroom and load up,’’ Braden said.
Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman, whose team was facing Smith’s Brewers when Smith’s substance was discovered, said he felt safer knowing the opposing pitcher was doctoring the ball.
“Every pitcher does it,’’ Freeman said, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s David O’Brien. “As a hitter you want them to do it so they have a better grip, so we don’t get hit in the head.’’
Farrell, whose credentials on the subject include eight seasons as a major league pitcher, four seasons as a pitching coach, and now his fifth season as a manager, seems to concede that the practice is commonplace and baseball would be better off trying to compromise by legalizing a substance that would allow pitchers to grip the baseball but not provide any unnatural movement on a pitched ball.
“If pitchers are putting themselves at risk and if the belief is that a widespread number of pitchers are doing it, why wouldn’t we look to improve the game?’’ Farrell said, as quoted by ESPN.
As the NFL moves to reform its policies and procedures on the handling of footballs prior to game time, MLB may not be far behind on trying to ensure a level playing field for all pitchers.
“Some staffers believe MLB should work to ensure that the baseballs are properly prepared for each game, and that a baseball put into play at Safeco Field is in about the same condition as a ball in Fenway Park or Petco Park,’’ ESPN’s Buster Olney writes. “It’s about quality control.’’
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