A ball that didn’t feel like regular baseball has landed Bailey Ober on the IL for the first time due to an arm injury in his MLB career. And that injury absence for the Minnesota Twins pitcher has taken an unexpected turn.

Starter Bailey Ober believes that the balls used during a Boston Red Sox game two weeks ago are the cause of his setback. 

“I haven’t dealt with poorly rubbed up baseballs to that extent ever,” Ober revealed to the Minnesota Star Tribune journalist Bobby Nightengale. 

The 30-year-old right-hander pitched 5.0 innings against Boston on May 24, allowing 7 hits and 4 runs. He felt that his arm was “beat up” after the game, but he somehow managed to enter the mound against the Pittsburgh Pirates that Saturday. Although he continued for 4.2 innings, his arm popped up after the first.

Ober suffered a right flexor strain, and they placed him on a 15-day IL on May 31. And now, the starter has filed a formal complaint with the MLB Players Association, and even manager Derek Shelton lodged a complaint on Ober’s behalf with the league.

“The only way to be able to throw slick baseballs is to grip them harder, so you can execute your pitches. If not, you’re not going to know where the ball is going, especially with breaking pitches,” the pitcher noted.

Per the righty, the baseballs felt like they were just out of the packaging.

According to the MLB rules, all the balls must be rubbed with Lena Blackburne Baseball Rubbing Mud before games.

Notably, it was cold and rainy at Fenway Park during the game. And Ober noticed the balls looked whiter than usual. They usually lose their color from the rubbing. He even asked for a new ball after throwing a few warm-up pitches. 

But they were all the same. And even the umpires weren’t able to come up with a solution. 

Ober even talked to Sonny Gray after the game.

The Red Sox starter gave away 6 hits and 3 runs over 4.0 innings, and he agreed on the balls’ condition.

“Brutal. Brutal. Brutal. Absolutely brutal,” Gray said, according to the Boston Globe. “It is what it is. It was brutal for everyone.”

In fact, Ober noted that, “Everyone that came in after me, the relievers, they all said the same thing.”

Although the Twins won the game 6-5, the pitcher noted those balls were the worst he’s had in his 6-year career. And even talking to the umpires didn’t help, as they didn’t really have any solution. Ober could’ve used a foreign substance for better grip, but even that would’ve ended in an automatic ejection and suspension if detected by the umpire.  

The league did investigate the baseballs and found no discrepancies. Reportedly, the balls were consistent with the league standards. But this is not the first time complaints about ball consistency have arisen. 

In 2019, several pitchers accused MLB of juiced-up balls that were responsible for the record home run pace. The total number of homers jumped to a massive 6,776, breaking the previous record of 6,105 in 2017. Just for context, the number is usually under 6,000, and last year it was only 5,868. But Commissioner Rob Manfred denied any such accusations. 

While that was a league-wide issue, this time it was an isolated one. But Ober’s injury makes it way more serious. 

UCL relief still leaves the Twins rotation in deep water

The MRI revealed a mild right flexor strain for Bailey Ober.

According to Twins AGM Jeremy Zoll, he will miss 10-14 games for now. There will be anti-inflammatories, and depending on his status, the franchise will decide on his return. The good news, however, is that he doesn’t have a UCL injury.

That might have sidelined him for far longer. 

But the Twins lost a dependable arm at a very critical time.

Minnesota has 7 pitchers on the injured list, and 5 of them, including Ober, are starters. Pablo López isn’t returning this season. While Mick Abel and Kendry Rojas will return in June, David Festa is still undecided. 

The Twins are 3rd in the AL Central with a 29-35 record. Even a 2.0 game behind a Wild Card spot seems too difficult at this point. While the Minnesota Twins have some relief from not losing Bailey Ober for long, his injury is still concerning enough.

It certainly adds a stain to MLB’s reputation, even though they didn’t find any irregularities in the baseballs.