LOS ANGELES: Major League Baseball pitchers using foreign substances to affect spin rate and ball control will face automatic 10-game suspensions as part of a new crackdown designed to level the playing field, the league announced Tuesday.
The use of sticky substances by pitchers has come under the microscope since the start of the new baseball season as batting averages have plummeted and strikeout rates have soared.
Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said Tuesday that after an investigation found widespread use of foreign substances, the league plans to get tough with pitchers and team employees altering the condition of the ball.
"After an extensive process of repeated warnings without effect, gathering information from current and former players and others across the sport, two months of comprehensive data collection, listening to our fans and thoughtful deliberation, I have determined that new enforcement of foreign substances is needed to level the playing field," Manfred said in a statement.
"I understand there's a history of foreign substances being used on the ball, but what we are seeing today is objectively far different, with much tackier substances being used more frequently than ever before.
"It has become clear that the use of foreign substance has generally morphed from trying to get a better grip on the ball into something else -- an unfair competitive advantage that is creating a lack of action and an uneven playing field."
Under the new guidelines, starting pitchers will be checked on multiple occasions throughout a game to ensure they are complying with the rules. Relievers will be checked at least once per game.
Major League Baseball said that an analysis of baseballs collected throughout the first two months of the season had found a "prevalence of foreign substance use" in the league and minor leagues.
Many baseballs were found to have dark amber-colored markings that were sticky to the touch, the league said.
Research by the league found that foreign substances dramatically increased the spin rate and movement of the ball, giving pitchers an unfair competitive advantage over hitters.
Since Major League Baseball first informed teams they were investigating the issue two weeks ago, offensive numbers have improved while spin rates by pitchers have also declined.
Several prominent pitchers including the Los Angeles Dodgers Trevor Bauer and the New York Yankees Gerrit Cole, were among those pitchers whose spin rates have declined in recent outings.
Manfred however insisted the crackdown was not intended to target "any individual player or club or placing blame."
"It is about a collective shift that has changed the game and needs to be addressed," Manfred said.
"We have a responsibility to our fans and the generational talent competing on the field to eliminate these substances and improve the game."
The league said that the new regulations did not apply exclusively to pitchers. Position players found to be applying foreign substances to a ball would face ejection from the game and suspension.