Posted on 07/24/2026 10:14:11 AM PDT by DFG
The image remains one of baseball's most iconic snapshots, as fresh in the minds of New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals fans today as it was in 1983.
On July 24, 1983, with two outs in the ninth and U.L. Washington on first base, Kansas City All-Star third baseman George Brett homered off New York closer Goose Gossage, giving the Royals a 5-4 lead. But while Brett celebrated in the Yankee Stadium dugout following his round-tripper, Yankees manager Billy Martin walked to home plate and informed umpire Tim McClelland that Brett's bat was covered with more pine tar than the rules allowed. Pine tar, a sticky glue-like substance used to give batters a better grip, hardens over time – making the bat more effective.
McClelland carefully measured the bat against the 17-inch width of home plate, determined that the bat violated the 18-inch pine tar rule, turned to the Royals dugout and signaled that Brett was out, ending the game.
An enraged Brett instantly charged McClelland, screaming wildly while being restrained by teammates and Royals manager Dick Howser. But the call stood, the game over.
George Brett led the American League in hits three times, and in batting average three times, during his career. (National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum)
Or so it seemed.
The Royals immediately protested the outcome, and American League president Lee MacPhail eventually overruled McClelland and ordered the game to be resumed from the point after Brett had homered. On Aug. 18, the teams reconvened at Yankee Stadium, and about 1,200 fans watched as Martin symbolically protested by putting pitcher Ron Guidry in center field and moving left-handed first baseman Don Mattingly to second base.
Martin then protested the game – before the first pitch to the Royals' Hal McRae – on the grounds that Brett did not touch all the bases during his home run and that the current umpiring crew could not verify this. But umpire Davey Phillips produced an affidavit signed by the July 24 umpires stating that Brett had indeed touched all bases. An irate Martin was quickly ejected from the game for arguing.
Yankees reliever George Frazier struck out McRae to end the top of the ninth, and Royals reliever Dan Quisenberry pitched a perfect bottom of the ninth to preserve Kansas City's 5-4 win.
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Guess pine tar in effect makes the bat a little fatter.
According the official box score from the Pine Tar Game, the game was completed in 2:52 — certainly not unreasonable by any measure. That would probably even be considered fast by today’s standards, as the teams combined for 21 hits and at least 25 base runners.
Situations such as #3 are not unprecedented. I’ve not been clear on what the rules are. Are the teams limited to 25 participants in the game? What if that is not possible (due to trades)?
Note that the league eventually let the homer stand in spite of the fact that Brett had too much pine tar, but today they’re penalizzing Jose Caballero for doing something entirely within the rules.
“American League President Lee MacPhail ruled that the rule against altered bats was intended to prevent corking and flat filing, not pine tar. “
In explaining his decision, MacPhail noted that the “spirit of the restriction” on pine tar on bats was based not on the fear of unfair advantage, but simple economics; any contact with pine tar would discolor the ball, render it unsuitable for play, and require that it be discarded and replaced—thus increasing the home team’s cost of supplying balls for a given game.
Wiki
?????
The arrival of the Royals spelled the end of the Monarchs?
The Royals started in 1969. Weren’t the Negro leagues long gone by then?
Literary license. Self-issued, admittedly. I’ve got so many points on it by now that I should probably revoke it.
Major league teams “rub up” 168 balls per game. Seven cartons of 24. Same number as there are hours in a week. These days if a ball contacts the ground or is hit into play, they discard it. When Ruth was playing, the ushers would retrieve balls from fans in the stands to resume play.
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