Pine Tar: For Hitters AND Pitchers?
Pine Tar's Impact on Today's Game by: Adam Jeannette What is Pine Tar? -Pine tar has been used in the game of baseball for as long as the game has been around. It is a sticky substance intended to be used for grip on the bat. It is legal for hitters to use on their bats, but not for pitchers to use in any way. Although this is the original intention behind pine tar, pitchers have been sneaking pine tar and other sticky substances onto their gloves, belts, hats, and even their neck to use it as an advantage for years. Baseball is a game of getting every slight advantage possible against your opponent, and pine tar does just that for pitchers. Michael Pineda caught for pine tar on his neck Why is it Used by Pitchers? -Pine tar is used by pitchers for different reasons than hitters. Even though it may slightly help with gripping the ball for each pitch, this is not the main reason behind its use with pitchers. Looking back on my last ...