Baseball Break-In

[Woodie]

I saw this on a wiffle ball page.
"Just like in the Major Leagues, pitchers DO NOT use a brand new ball. Each ball is rubbed with special mud and broken in before each game. The balls are than given to the umpires for game use. The mud takes the slickness off the ball and allows the ball to have better movement and also makes the ball a few shades darker which makes it harder for batters to see."
Never heard that before, is it true?

[Brooklyn]

I saw this on a wiffle ball page.
"Just like in the Major Leagues, pitchers DO NOT use a brand new ball. Each ball is rubbed with special mud and broken in before each game. The balls are than given to the umpires for game use. The mud takes the slickness off the ball and allows the ball to have better movement and also makes the ball a few shades darker which makes it harder for batters to see."
Never heard that before, is it true?

yes. There is a story on this in Baseball Fever Exclusives

[BigRon]

Well, the ball IS new- it's never been used, It's rubbed down to reduce the sheen/slipperiness. I doubt that the color change has much effect on what the batters see. By the way, this has been going on for a LONG time- nothing new here at all.

[Woodie]

Thanks guys!