Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts came to the defense of star pitcher Trevor Bauer on Friday.
Bauer sounded off on Thursday about "misleading clickbait headlines" after it was reported MLB had collected several baseballs for inspection from Bauer's most recent start against the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday.
Conflicting reports made it unclear whether Bauer was specifically targeted, or if it was merely a new routine procedure as part of a larger initiative announced by MLB last month to study and, if necessary, crack down on pitchers doctoring balls.
Roberts, the skipper of the reigning World Series champions, left little doubt about how he interpreted the incident. After confirming he thought Bauer had been singled out, a reporter asked why.
"I don't know," Roberts said, per ESPN. "That's the only name I've heard floated around."
Ironically, Bauer has at times in recent years been among the most outspoken critics of pitchers suspected of using foreign substances, supposedly for increased grip. He came under scrutiny, however, after a midseason trade to the Cincinnati Reds in 2019, when a marked uptick in his own spin rates was observed.
Last offseason, the league informed all 30 clubs teams that it would be collecting balls, mostly for study and observation, so that clearer standards could be laid out moving forward. However, pitchers found to be in violation of the current rules can still be punished, ESPN reported.
Roberts, for his part, said he wants to make sure there's equal treatment of all pitchers.
"My understanding is that umpires collect baseballs from all the pitchers, and balls that were in play, to collect samples," Roberts said. "That's kind of what I get from it. I just hope that our player is not singled out. That's the one thing I want to guard against."