Lena Blackburne Mud

[webmaster]

Hello Baseball Fever Members & Guests,

I am often asked about the story behind the mud rubbed on the balls before each game by the umpires. Here is an Associated Press article that I believe is second-to-none in terms of an explanation:

Baseball's Mud Man Lives Quiet Life

SEMINOLE, Fla. (AP) -- To his neighbors, Burns Bintliff is
a retired New Jersey Turnpike maintenance contractor.
To Major league players, who may not even know his
name, he's the supplier of a silky, chocolate
pudding-like product known as "magic mud."

Umpires at every major and minor league ballpark in
America and Canada use the mud, called Lena
Blackburne Rubbing Mud, to take the shine of baseballs
before each game.

Shiny balls, straight out of their plastic wrapping,
are no good, professionals say. Pitchers can't get a good grip
and hitters are sometimes blinded when the sun or
indoor lighting hits the too-white surface.

Umpires say a little dab of Bintliff's mud removes the
shine off balls without scratching or denting the
surface.

Bintliff's product is so superior to other muds,
professionals say, that in 1969 it was permanently
enshrined in the Hall of Fame at Cooperstown.

"There's something about this mud," retired major
league umpire Bill Kinnamon told the St. Petersburg Times
for its Monday editions. "I don't know how to explain it. It
takes the shine off without getting the ball excessively
dark."

According to Bintliff's wife, Doris, Russell Aubrey "Lena"
Blackburne was a major league infielder with the Chicago
White Sox and later, a coach for the then-Philadelphia
Athletics.

At the time, the mid-1930s, teams used a variety of
substances to rub baseballs -- tobacco juice, shoe polish,
dirt from the baseball field or a combination -- but nothing
they tried gave the balls the right look or feel.

Blackburne searched for the perfect rubbing compound
until one day, according to legend, he found mud he liked
in a secret body of water, probably some place in the
northeast.

By 1938, he was supplying the mud to all American
League teams. Because he was a die-hard American
League fan, he refused to sell the mud to National
League teams until the mid-1950s. Since then, every
major and minor league team has used only the product.
One container, a little more than 16 ounces, will
usually last a season.

"There's a can of it in every umpire's dressing room,"
said Kinnamon "Before each game, we'd rub up about
five dozen balls, more for a double header."

Blackburne died in 1968 and left the mud business to
his boyhood friend, John Haas, who was the father of
Bintliff's first wife.

Before he died, Haas shared the secrets of the mud with
Bintliff, including its source. Today, the mud remains a
mystery and only a few family members know where it
comes from.

Buddy Bates, equipment manager for the St. Louis
Cardinals, said there is a tub of Bintliff's mud in his locker
room. "We get it automatically every spring," Bates
said. "It costs $100."

I hope each of you found this as interesting as I did,

Sean

[DownUnderDodger]

Wow, an amazing story - thank you! I was totally unaware that new balls needed the shine removed.

R.B. from Down Under

[Eddie Collins]

Great story!

[shoeless joe]

good read,thanx for posting

[lamearm]

For a long time, my favorite baseball trivia question was: Who was and what is Lena Blackburn.....Now I will have to go in search of another. I believe I read someplace that the mud came from the Delaware River, but I wouldn't take an oath on that....

[Imapotato]

There is show on National Geographic IIRC, that this guy does these horrible jobs...such as sewer worker, bat biologist (knee deep in guano)

One show he actually went and did the Lena Blackburne mud job...silting it and such...there is a guy in each clubhouse that uses that mud to rub the balls...nice job!

[katydaly]

Sorry to post on a topic that is a few years old, but I hope someone sees this.

I am working on an eagle sculpture project which relates to the story about the baseball rubbing mud. I live in Palmyra, NJ, and have always heard from everyone here that it comes from the Delaware River somewhere in Palmyra...our one claim to fame.

Is it possible that this is just our little urban rumor? Or do you think it is true?

Also, I have contacted Mr. Bintliff, son or grandson of the man mentioned in your article. He has a website you might find interesting:

http://baseballrubbingmud.com

PS: If anyone has any brilliant ideas as to how I can get some old beat up baseballs donated to this project, I need about 60 or 70 more. I am covering the back of a 6-ft fiberglas eagle with the leather skins from the balls. The older and more beat up, the better.

[lamearm]

That is the truth, as far as where it comes from is concerned.

Ole Lena also managed the Little Rock Travelers in 1925. His record was 67-86, good for 8th place, but their attendance increased from 52,434 in '24 to 79,653 during Lena's year at the helm.

Sorry, I can't help you out with the old baseball covers.

[Ichi Ro]

You can buy the mud and rub em down.
I bought some of the mud at a local sports shop in Remond WA.

[Yankees]

There is a similar article in the sports section of the NYTimes today. I can't find it online, so here is the near same from Newsday:

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wi...on-apnewjersey

[CultofCubs]

There was also a episode of Dirty Jobs on the Discovery channel where they went to the guy to creates and packages the mud used, its a home business, pretty interesting.

[E.Banks#14]

Lena Blackburne - Boston Braves - Found the mud used to rub baseballs.JPG
Here's a rare photo of Lena Blackburne playing for the Boston Braves in 1919

[Mr.MojoRisin]

That's amazing. I've never heard that one before. That's pretty cool.

[Tarheelfan44]

i swear i've heard where it's from. i've heard somewhere in N.J. but i really think i've heard the river's name.

[Tarheelfan44]

ahhhhh. it's the delaware river

[T Rip]

I heard it was from somewhere in Maryland... That was years ago however.

[SportsLore]

According to a 2003 article, Mr. Bintliff says that the source has changed twice. From what I've been able to discover, originally it was somewhere along the Rancocas Creek in Burlington County, NJ, and I believe it still is located there. Recently in an episode of Discovery Channel's "Dirty Jobs," they showed how they harvest the mud, and although they did not show the exact location, it had to be along the Rancocas Creek since there is no other body of water nearby. The Rancocas does empty into the Delaware River which explains how it is sometimes described as being harvested from a Delaware River tributary.

[TULSA OILERS]

The book 101 Baseball Places To See Before You Strike Out by Josh Pahigian covers "The Baseball Mud Site" as one of the 101 places. It's an interesting book to read through if you travel to different baseball oriented landmarks.

I'd like to get some of the mud just to have. There's quite a bit of history behind this "mysterious" substance.

[Rockhound]

Did any of you happen to catch this clip online about this amazing mud?
http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/10/28/bas...mud/index.html