Michael Pineda And 10 Pitchers Who Were Caught Using Pine Tar

By James O'Hare

Michael Pineda And 10 Pitchers Who Were Caught Using Pine Tar

Michael Pineda, New York Yankees — Michael Pineda has received a 10-game suspension for applying a foreign substance to the ball, more specifically pine tar. Though Pineda might have been the most blatant, he is by no means the first pitcher to be caught doctoring the ball. These are 10 pitchers who were caught using pine tar by cameras and/or umpires.

10. Whitey Ford, 1963

Whitey Ford, New York Yankees

10. Whitey Ford, 1963

Whitey Ford, New York Yankees — Whitey Ford was never caught using pine tar in a game, but he has since become known for using his wedding ring as well as a turpentine-pine tar mixture to doctor the ball. The Chairman of the Board admitted that in the 1963 World Series, "I used enough mud to build a dam."

9. Gaylord Perry, 1982

Gaylord Perry, Seattle Mariners

9. Gaylord Perry, 1982

Gaylord Perry, Seattle Mariners — Gaylord Perry was a well-known spit baller who, prior to his windup, would touch his cap, eyebrows, forearm, pant leg and basically anywhere you could possibly hide an illegal substance. It was his routine before every pitch, but umpires could never catch him red-handed. Finally in 1982, he was ejected for using a foreign substance.

8. Jay Howell, 1988

Jay Howell, Los Angeles Dodgers

8. Jay Howell, 1988

Jay Howell, Los Angeles Dodgers — In the 1988 NLCS, Jay Howell was caught with pine tar in his glove. He was ejected and suspended for three games. Despite the setback, the Los Angeles Dodgers prevailed over the New York Mets and went on to defeat the Oakland Athletics in the World Series.

7. Julian Tavarez, 2004

Julian Tavarez, St. Louis Cardinals

7. Julian Tavarez, 2004

Julian Tavarez, St. Louis Cardinals — In August of 2004, Julian Tavarez was caught with pine tar on the brim of his hat. He was ejected and hit with a 10-game suspension.

6. Brendan Donnelly, 2005

Brendan Donnelly, Anaheim Angels

6. Brendan Donnelly, 2005

Brendan Donnelly, Anahaim Angels — In June of 2005, Brendan Donelly was caught with pine tar on his glove. Like Tavarez the year before, he was ejected and suspended for 10 games.

5. Kenny Rogers, 2006

Kenny Rogers, Detroit Tigers

5. Kenny Rogers, 2006

Kenny Rogers, Detroit Tigers — In Game 2 of the 2006 World Series, cameras caught what appeared to be pine tar on Kenny Rogers' left hand. He eventually washed it off and was never inspected by an umpire. Still, it caused many to question the legitimacy of his 23 consecutive scoreless innings streak that postseason.

4. Joel Peralta, 2012

Joel Peralta, Tampa Bay Rays

4. Joel Peralta, 2012

Joel Peralta, Tampa Bay Rays — In June of 2012, Joel Peralta was ejected in a game against the Washington Nationals for having pine tar in his glove. The most amazing part of this incident was that he didn't throw a single pitch. It seems too coincidental that two years prior, Peralta had posted a 2.02 ERA for the Nats and led the team in WHIP.

3. Clay Buchholz, 2013

Clay Buchholz, Boston Red Sox

3. Clay Buchholz, 2013

Clay Buchholz, Boston Red Sox — On May 1, 2013, the Toronto Blue Jays' broadcasters and former pitchers Dirk Hayhurst and Jack Morris noticed that Clay Buchholz had some sort of substance on his left forearm. It didn't appear to be pine tar, but it did look like Buchholz was doctoring the ball, possibly with some mixture of sun tan lotion. Despite the accusations, Buchholz was not ejected or suspended.

2. Jon Lester, 2013

Jon Lester, Boston Red Sox

2. Jon Lester, 2013

Jon Lester, Boston Red Sox — In the 2013 World Series, cameras caught glimpses of a foreign substance in Jon Lester's glove. However, the St. Louis Cardinals did not protest and Lester stayed in the game -- and won a World Series ring.

1. Michael Pineda, 2014

Michael Pineda, New York Yankees

1. Michael Pineda, 2014

Michael Pineda, New York Yankees — Michael Pineda has been caught twice with pine tar this season -- the first time only by cameras, and the second by cameras and umpires. It's mind boggling how he initially got off scot-free and responded by using the substance more blatantly the second time against the same team. He was rightfully ejected after the latter incident and received a 10-game suspension.

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