As MLB prepares to officially crack down on pitchers who have been using sticky substances on the mound, Yankees pitcher Corey Kluber has had his name attached to accusations.
Bubba Harkins, a former Los Angeles Angels clubhouse attendant who was fired after an MLB investigation found he had violated rules regarding illegal substances, told Sports Illustrated he feels he’s being singled out over something that is widespread in the game.
Harkins, who says he provided a specially-created sticky concoction to many pitchers throughout baseball during his time with the Angels — including Gerrit Cole and Max Scherzer — provided SI with text messages to him from a number of those players or those players’ teams requesting the concoction.
When it comes to Kluber, Harkins said he used the concoction while with the Cleveland Indians.
“Joba Chamberlain was on the Tigers; that’s how he became familiar with it,” Harkins told SI. “And then he went to Cleveland [where] Corey Kluber got a hold of it. Now, when Corey comes into town, he asks me. I’m like, ‘O.K.’ So never ever did I solicit anyone. Never. It was just, they would come and ask me. And of course, I’m gonna accommodate, being that that’s my job.”
Kluber’s agent, B.B. Abbott, told SI that Harkins “never personally gave anything of the sort to Corey Kluber nor has he ever used any substance prepared by” Harkins in an MLB game.
Kluber, who signed with the Yankees before the season, is currently on the IL due to a shoulder injury.
When Cole was asked last week about allegations that he’s been using Spider Tack — a certain type of sticky substance — he paused for a long time before giving a non-answer.
“I don’t quite know how to answer that, to be honest,” Cole said. “There are customs and practices that have been passed down from older players to younger players, from the last generation of players to this generation of players.
“I think there are some things that are certainly out of bounds in the regard, and I’ve stood pretty firm in terms of that, in terms of the communication between our peers and whatnot. If MLB wants to legislate some more stuff, that’s a conversation that we can have, because ultimately we should all be pulling in the same direction on this.”
It is expected that MLB will issue specific protocols regarding new enforcement of sticky substances in the coming weeks.