# MLB: May 2021 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** baseball-mlb\ **Created:** [May 2, 2021, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222 "2021-05-02T13:42:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![Mike\_Mabes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mike_mabes/32/1782_2.png) [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2021, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/201 "2021-05-26T05:54:40Z")
Hopefully a little soreness in the elbow is normal. Mets said they were not overly concerned, but they always say that ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2021, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/202 "2021-05-26T06:06:48Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Dodgers beat the Asterisks 9-2 as the Houston bullpen walks in 4 runs in the last 2 innings. Another byproduct of that stupid “3 hitters” rule. I’d rather see a few pitchers embarrass themselves than sit through a dozen pitching changes in late innings. Maybe if scouts valuing accuracy again over raw speed this wouldn’t be such an issue. Imma start calling these Seabiscuit moments. As in, “wow, he sure is fast.” “Yeah, in _every direction_.” ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2021, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/203 "2021-05-26T18:19:41Z")
> [@Mike\_Mabes](#): > > Another Mets centerfielder goes down, that’s 4 for the year. They still have Cameron Maybin. Now 0 for 21 with the Mets. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2021, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/204 "2021-05-26T19:26:11Z")
> Seems like the right thing to do about now. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2021, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/205 "2021-05-26T23:54:53Z")
[It looks like MLB is starting to:](https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/2177957) 1. Implement some sort of policing on foreign substances, and 2. Completely miss the plot on HOW to implement it, and what substances to look for. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/206 "2021-05-27T01:12:47Z")
The White Sox are just clueless. They renamed an area of Comiskey that was honoring a concession worker who’d worked there for 50 years after Tony La Russa > **[White Sox rename seating area after Tony La Russa in place of esteemed...](https://chicago.suntimes.com/white-sox/2021/5/26/22455690/white-sox-rename-seating-area-after-tony-la-russa-in-place-of-esteemed-concessions-worker?fbclid=IwAR3XERK40FjE1ermjWnzf4eWBjK5FB6RmMac7nmStUBAhfZ1JxRtXipLygo)** > > Loretta’s Lounge is no more. “LaRUSSA’s LOUNGE” has replaced it. How stupid can you be? Name one of the beer vending areas after La Russa if you must. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/207 "2021-05-27T02:24:03Z")
I love the Cards’ manager’s defense of his pitcher who evidently had a glop of sunscreen on his cap. Why, he was just worried about melanoma! That’s exactly what I do when going out in the sun, load up the brim of my cap with sunscreen. I’d never think of, you know, smearing it on exposed _skin_. “Name one of the beer vending areas after La Russa if you must.” How about the LaRussa Ball Four Lounge? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/208 "2021-05-27T12:18:15Z")
Is it just me, or is MLB (or MLB reporting) following the general US trend towards real life turning into a parody of so-called “reality” TV that itself was/is supposed to be a parody of the crazier / stupider parts of real life? ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/209 "2021-05-27T12:32:42Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > I love the Cards’ manager’s defense of his pitcher who evidently had a glop of sunscreen on his cap. Why, he was just worried about melanoma! Did Schildt say Cabrera was using the sunscreen for sun protection? I think the gist of his comments were that every pitcher in baseball uses sunscreen and rosin to enhance their grip, and the league basically allows it (his “dirty little secret” comment). It is the “other” substances like the stuff powerlifters use that the league is trying to crack down on because it creates abnormal spin rates, which can be detected via StatCast and the like. I believe I read that Cabrera’s spin rates before and after he changed caps were identical. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/210 "2021-05-27T14:05:37Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > > [@Jackmannii](#): > > > > I love the Cards’ manager’s defense of his pitcher who evidently had a glop of sunscreen on his cap. Why, he was just worried about melanoma! > > Did Schildt say Cabrera was using the sunscreen for sun protection? From ESPN, quoting Schildt: “Here’s the deal. First of all, Gio wears the same hat all year. Hats accrue dirt. Hats accrue substances. … Did Gio have some sunscreen at some point in his career to make sure he doesn’t get some kind of melanoma? Possibly.” > **[Shildt tossed, rips ump for 'policing' pitcher's hat](https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/31517763/st-louis-cardinals-mike-shildt-tossed-arguing-giovanny-gallegos-ordered-switch-caps)** > > St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Shildt was ejected for arguing after reliever Giovanny Gallegos was ordered to switch caps because umpires thought there was sunscreen on the bill. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/211 "2021-05-27T14:13:42Z")
Here’s a more relevant quote from his post-game: “You want to police some sunscreen and rosin? Go ahead. Get every single person in this league. … Why don’t you start with the guys that are cheating with some stuff that’s really impacting the game?” He’s absolutely right. What the league needs to do is provide all the MLB-approved rosin and sunscreen that pitchers want, and let them go hog-wild with it. That’s not the problem. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/212 "2021-05-27T14:21:23Z")
Thanks! And yes, I agree with @Munch. Hopefully Schildt was correct that it was just sunscreen and MLB comes up with a policy and procedure that makes sense and is enforceable to get the other substances out of the game. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/213 "2021-05-27T14:33:11Z")
For those interested in the current state of play regarding foreign substances used by pitchers, this article from last July is pretty good, and has links to others: [What the MLB’s Foreign-Substance Crackdown Could Mean for Pitchers - The Ringer](https://www.theringer.com/mlb/2020/7/10/21175567/banned-substances-pitchers-spin-rate-four-seam) Let’s just say that basically every pitcher is using something, and Trevor Bauer has basically admitted that he has tested more exotic substances in order to add 200-400 RPM to his spin rates. You can see it even in-game where he used something in the first inning and then stopped. Baseball really has to decide what they are going to do, if anything, about this. Because a system in which everybody cheats (at least according to the written rules) and only a small handful are challenged is not healthy. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/214 "2021-05-27T15:40:05Z")
> [@dalej42](#): > > The White Sox are just clueless. They renamed an area of Comiskey that was honoring a concession worker who’d worked there for 50 years after Tony La Russa It’s not that they’re clueless, it’s la La Russa is Reinsdorf’s man crush and he doesn’t give a shit about ordinary people. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/215 "2021-05-27T15:40:50Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > Baseball really has to decide what they are going to do, if anything, about this. Because a system in which everybody cheats (at least according to the written rules) and only a small handful are challenged is not healthy. It would be so, so easy to fix this. You randomly check and hand out a 50-game suspension to the pitcher and his manager and pitching coach. It’d stop very swiftly. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/216 "2021-05-27T16:34:50Z")
[Noah Synndergaard](https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/31521124/new-york-mets-shut-noah-syndergaard-six-weeks-elbow-inflammation) is shut down for the next 6 weeks ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/217 "2021-05-27T16:55:42Z")
Sure, but I think the main point Schildt (and others) have made is that the league doesn’t _really_ want to eliminate all foreign substances. They believe that the sunscreen+rosin combo helps grip but doesn’t significantly improve spin rates and pitcher performance - it just reduces HBP and wildness. It’s the more esoteric and advanced substances they are trying to police. But of course the rule doesn’t make a distinction, so it seems they are trying to collect enough data about the effects of various substances to come up with an “approved formula” that achieves the good part of grip enhancement without the crazy spin rates that Bauer, Cole, etc seem to have gained from using whatever they came up with in the lab. ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/218 "2021-05-27T19:48:05Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > Bauer, Cole, etc seem to have gained from using whatever they came up with in the lab. As a Dodgers fan I cringe every time I read this stuff. I’m not emotionally invested in him as a player so I can accept he may be dirty I just worry that without the aid we may have just wildly overpaid for a player. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/219 "2021-05-27T20:23:14Z")
Will Craig of the Pirates today had one of the most bone-headed plays I’ve ever seen. And judging from Twitter, one of the most bone-headed anyone has ever seen and will ever see again. With two outs, Javier Báez hits a routine grounder to third. The throw to first pulls Craig off the bag, but he’s still standing between 1st and the runner. Instead of stepping back on the bag, Craig starts slowly trotting down the first base line while Báez stays just out of reach. Meanwhile, the runner from 2nd has rounded the bases and comes home. If you’re Craig, do you 1) just tag Báez, 2) throw back to the 2nd baseman covering 1st, or 3) make a high toss to the catcher, standing him up so he can’t make the tag on the runner? Craig chose (3), and the play actually gets worse from there. > **[Listen: Pirates radio call of the Javier Baez-Will Craig play sounds like a...](https://fansided.com/2021/05/27/pirates-radio-call-javier-baez-will-craig-play-video/)** > > Javier Baez and Will Craig combined for an oxymoron play for the ages, and the Pirates radio call is the cherry on top.  This is not hyperbole: The Javy B... ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222/220 "2021-05-27T20:50:53Z")
The amazing thing is that for a split-second even the announcers seemed to think that Craig had to get the batter/runner out quickly. But he didn’t. It doesn’t matter at all if the runner from second scores, because there were 2 outs. If the batter doesn’t make it to first base before there are three outs then no runs score on the play. Craig could have literally stood there with the ball and just tagged Baez whenever. And even then, if the Pirates second baseman actually had covered first like he should have they _still_ would have gotten the out and the run wouldn’t have counted. But then again, why would you think you needed to cover first since the batter _literally cannot go anywhere else_ and the idea that your first baseman wouldn’t know that is rather inconceivable. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2021/941222.md?page=12)