© Ron Chenoy | 2021 Apr 2
One of the players most vocal about Major League Baseball cracking down on doctored baseballs is now the first to become the subject of an investigation in the league’s effort to step up monitoring of foreign substances.
According to a report in The Athletic, multiple baseballs thrown by Dodgers starting pitcher Trevor Bauer during Wednesday’s start against the Oakland A’s were sent to the commissioner’s office after umpires saw that the balls had visible markings and were sticky. It is unclear what Bauer’s punishment would be if the balls were found to have foreign substances on them, as the player’s association would likely claim it can’t be proved that the substances came from Bauer.
When asked about the baseballs, Bauer, who is probably the most outspoken star in MLB, declined to comment.
In 2018, Bauer tweeted how pitchers are able to increase their spin rates by applying foreign substances to baseballs, and made vague references to the Astros doing so. An article in The Athletic last year said that “Almost everyone is using something,” and that the effects are “better than steroids.”
It is unclear at this time what Bauer’s punishment would be if the league determines the ball has been doctored.