Stroman points blistering finger at MLB

Marcus Stroman has an idea who’s to blame for all the nagging blisters bothering pitchers lately. He’s pointing a finger at Major League Baseball.

“I feel like it’s an epidemic that’s happening across the big leagues now, a bunch of pitchers getting blisters, guys who have never had blisters before. So for MLB to turn their back to it, I think that’s kind of crazy,” the Toronto Blue Jays righthander said. “I have no theory. But obviously, I mean, it’s not a coincidence that it’s happening to so many guys all of a sudden. It’s not a coincidence.”

Asked if he was implying all the blisters have something to do with an altered baseball, he would only repeat: “It’s not a coincidence.”

A frustrated Stroman was removed from his start against the New York Yankees after 79 pitches Monday night because of a developing blister.

In the fifth inning, Stroman was checked on the mound by a trainer who appeared to snip some skin off one of the pitcher’s fingers. Stroman finished the inning, but then was pulled as a precaution by manager John Gibbons, who said Stroman’s finger was getting raw.

“Can’t take a chance,” Gibbons said.

Stroman’s teammate, righthander Aaron Sanchez, is on the disabled list with a blister on his pitching hand.

Oakland pitcher Jharel Cotton, Arizona righty Taijuan Walker and Miami lefty Justin Nicolino are among the major league pitchers who left outings or missed time recently due to blisters. David Price and Noah Syndergaard had them crop up this year, too.

“I’ve never had a blister ever in my life. Nothing even remotely close,” Stroman said after Toronto’s 6-3 loss. “It’s crazy. It’s extremely frustrating. Extremely frustrating.”

With hitters setting records for home run totals throughout the majors this season, some have theorized the baseball must be “juiced.”

But a doctored ball causing blisters on pitchers? That might be a first – although Stroman didn’t quite go that far.

For decades, blisters have been problematic for certain pitchers. They can be the result of fingers tightly gripping or continuously rubbing on the ball, especially along the seams to create tight spin and extra movement.

Suggested remedies have included everything from pickle brine and aloe vera to old-fashioned Elmer’s Glue.