Everyone Is Ripping Gerrit Cole's Rant About Gripping The Baseball Because They're Too Scared To Admit He's Right

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Gerrit Cole tossed eight strong innings last night against the Toronto (Buffalo) Blue Jays, one of the most dangerous offenses in all of baseball. This wasn't his usual eight dominant inning performance, however. Despite the success, the Yankees ace's fastball spin rate was about 200 RPMs lower than his season average. He only generated two swings and misses on his 4 seam fastball and tallied just four strikeouts as he struggled to grip the baseball under the league's new rules. He relied on his changeup which he threw for a career-high 20 times on Wednesday night, including a ridiculous 95 mph one to get Bo Bichette to end the 8th inning. It was a survive by adapting kind of night for number 45. That will be the narrative for every pitcher in the game as we move forward with the season under these new changes to the rules. 

The new anti-sticky MLB rules restrict pitchers from using any sort of substance on the mound. Pitchers across the league, yes not just Gerrit Cole, are now being forced to adapt on the fly as Rob Manfred fucked with the game mid-season once again. 

After the game, Cole spoke out on the new changes. If you hate him and the Yankees I know you're going to rip him for coming off as whiny. I can see that for sure, but if you actually listen to what he's asking for, is he wrong? Like it or not he is echoing the sentiments of every pitcher in the game, minus maybe deGrom because he's an alien.

I laughed with the "for Pete's sake" I'll admit. 

Understand how ridiculous it is that these guys are being forced to adjust on the fly in a matter of weeks. This is something they were told before the season would not be an issue in 2021. Should Gerrit Cole be allowed to use spider tack? No, but telling all of these pitchers they can't use practically anything is utter bullshit. Hitters are allowed to use an abundance of things to help them grip the bat, so why can't pitchers? All these baseballs get rubbed up with mud and are dried out while they wait to be put in play. When they get to the pitchers' hands they're basically cue balls from a game of pool. So now instead of having some aid in grip, pitchers are being hung out to dry? You are fist fucking these guys and it's bullshit. 

I'm not telling you to legalize spider tack and Cole isn't either. He's saying, like every other pitcher, to legalize a universal substance that gives these guys a chance. Give them SOMETHING. The way to do this right was to implement it in the offseason, but no they had to do it now. Why? Because Manfred fucked up the deadening of the ball and had to use someone as a scapegoat to cover his tracks. He chose the pitchers. 

Banning the sunscreen, rosin, sweat combo remains asinine. It's led to Glasnow's injury per Glasnow himself. Cole said he gave the Rays pitcher a call following his injury and now doesn't want the same thing to happen to someone else. If you continue these rules as they are for the remainder of the season you are going to see injury after injury as guys try to change their mechanics. Glasnow was forced to grip the ball harder and it put more tension on his elbow leading to a tear in his UCL. You think he's going to be the only one with that fate? You're just wrong. 

Gerrit Cole is a very good pitcher and can pitch to a high level like you saw Wednesday night without a sticky substance. 

That does not stray from the fact that pitchers around the league should not be stripped of all help out there.  They're not complaining about drops in spin rate, they just want to grip the fucking baseball. The league ignored this rule for YEARS and now all of sudden you're a criminal if you use any kind of sticky substance. Fuck off. Manfred never played baseball so he doesn't get it. He never will. It's why he shouldn't have any power or say in this sport. All Cole wants is for them to hear their suggestions and come to some kind of middle ground. The movement towards a less sticky sport is well understood, but going to this extreme is fucking idiotic. 

But yeah I'm sure he'll be singled out as the only bad guy here while Glasnow, Scherzer, Bauer, and others have said the exact same thing. Whatever I guess that comes with the pinstripes and being dubbed the villain. Anyways, good two wins to start the series in Buffalo. Get the fucking sweep tonight for once. New podcast is out detailing all of this along with Gary Sanchez's resurgence. Give her a listen.