Pine tar usage not as tacky as it looks

Jerry Reuss readily admits having used Stickum and other substances to help improve his grip on the ball during his 22-year big league pitching career. But the colorful left-hander still maintains he never violated the Major League Baseball rule that prohibits using a foreign substance on the baseball.

“What I had on my fingers is made in the good old USA,” he said.

All kidding aside, Reuss — a 220-game winner and member of the 1981 Los Angeles Dodgers’ World Series title team — said he wasn’t trying to gain an unfair advantage on the mound, only a better grip.

“I didn’t want to put anything on the ball. That wasn’t my intent. My intent was just to put it on my fingers so I could feel the grip,” he said. “There’s a range of tackiness that you need in order to get that feel.

“There were other guys who applied all kinds of things to the baseball. Their intent was entirely different. It was to cheat. My intent was to get a grip.”

New York Yankees pitcher Michael Pineda essentially said the same thing after getting ejected from an April 23 game against the Boston Red Sox in which he was caught with pine tar on his neck.

His subsequent 10-game suspension has sparked a national debate about whether pine tar should be made legal for pro pitchers and whether it affects only grip or the movement of the ball as well.

An informal survey of past and present players and coaches at Cashman Field resulted in several opinions, though all agreed it was Pineda’s blatant use of pine tar that left Boston manager John Farrell little choice but to complain and plate umpire Gerry Davis no choice but to toss him.

“Pitchers have used pine tar forever, but not like that,” 51s manager Wally Backman said.

Las Vegas pitching coach Tom Signore joked that Pineda could have had a plausible excuse.

“It may have just been by accident,” he said. “He might have bumped into one of his teammates who was putting it on his bat.”

Reuss said he tried using liquid pine tar, but discovered that the Manny Mota Grip Stick — a pine tar stick still used by batters — worked best for him.

“You just rubbed it on the bat until it got enough tacky on it,” he said. “I used that on my fingers with rosin, and it was perfect.

“Everybody uses a little bit of something to some degree.”

Which is why Cleveland Indians scout Bryan Corey — a former 51s pitcher and member of the 2007 Red Sox World Series champions — said MLB should permit pitchers to use pine tar or a similar substance.

“I think it should be legal. Not necessarily pine tar, but something,” he said. “It’s really more of a safety issue because so many times you throw a baseball and it’s slick. You’re just trying to get something so the ball doesn’t slip out of your hand.

“Would you rather have me lose one up and in and smoke you in the face or would you rather have me be able to hit my spot?”

Corey estimates at least half and up to 80 percent of all pro pitchers use foreign substances to get a better grip.

“There are so many different ways to manipulate the ball,” he said. “I don’t know how many guys either put sunblock on their wrists, which you can’t see, and throw the rosin on there. I did that.

“You’ve got Firm Grip (spray) or you put pine tar somewhere. The only time rosin helps is if you’re sweating. Either change the baseball and make it a little tackier, or let them have something. It’s not affecting how the ball moves.”

Reuss seconds that notion, but Signore said pine tar definitely increases the spin on the ball.

“The bottom line is it’s for your breaking ball,” he said. “Anything where you need friction to produce a certain type of spin, if it’s sticky, it’s going to spin more.

“It does help. There’s no question. I do think it’s an unfair advantage.”

Signore, a minor league pitching coach since 1997, said he used pine tar as often as possible when he pitched in the Milwaukee Brewers’ farm system.

“I had to, because I wasn’t very good,” he said. “I put it in my belt. I would tug my pants up, get it on my thumb and go to my middle finger. Those two fingers throw the curve.

“I think half of it is psychological. I know some pitchers who actually want to make people think they’re using stuff, so they’ll touch their glove a certain way or touch their wrist, and there’s nothing there.”

During his playing days, Backman said he “could’ve cared less if (pitchers) used pine tar.”

Considering batters are allowed to use pine tar, the Manny Mota Grip Stick and more, Corey said it’s only fair to afford pitchers the same options.

“I equate it to sticking a brand new bat in a guy’s hands without pine tar and see how often he’s launching bats into the stands,” he said. “If you want to even the playing field, take away the pine tar from them and take away their batting gloves.”

Like Reuss, Corey said he tried using pine tar but struggled to find the proper amount. He applied too much during one disastrous outing and could barely throw the ball.

“I was bouncing stuff on the grass,” he said. “It stuck to my hand.”

He should have tried using Vaseline. Technically, it’s not a foreign substance. It’s made in the good old USA.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354. Follow him on Twitter: @tdewey33.