Alek Manoah of the Toronto Blue Jays believes he knows who the biggest cheater in MLB history is. While appearing on NBA player Serge Ibaka’s show “How Hungry Are You?” the forward asked the pitcher the same question, and Manoah responded quickly. “Gerrit Cole,” he replied.
Ibaka, who was unfamiliar with the history of the New York Yankees ace, questioned Manoah why he chose that name. “He had cheated. He utilized a lot of sticky material to improve his pitches. And he was called on itManoah stated.
Sticky Chemicals Have Been Banned by the League for Some Time
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During the 2021 campaign, the crackdown on sticky chemicals began. They’ve been outlawed by the league for a while, but pitchers would sneak them on their hands to help create more movement and greater control. And when MLB mandated that pitchers be checked during outings, many fingers were pointed at Gerrit Cole, among other pitchers, for alleged use of it.
Gerrit Cole was most recently suspected of using something during a start against the Cleveland Guardians early in the 2022 season when he looked to be rubbing a location on his back after every pitch.
Cole Has Never Been Penalized
However, he was never penalized for any violation and did not face one for the remainder of the season. Gerrit Cole played with the Houston Astros, who were proven to have cheated during the 2017 season when they won the World Series.
Gerrit Cole joined the Astros in 2018 and played two All-Star seasons with them, both of which were accused of cheating, although only the 2017 season is documented.
So, whereas that club utilized garbage cans to signal pitches to hitters and won the World Series, Manoah singled out his AL East foe Gerrit Cole, which might lead to some amusing banter next season.
There Has Already Been Conflicting Between Cole and Manoah
Gerrit Cole stepped out of the dugout and appeared to be shouting for Manoah’s ejection after he struck 2022 AL MVP Aaron Judge with a pitch in August.
After the game, Manoah had some words for Gerrit Cole, “I threw a pitch, and obviously it hit Judge,” Manoah explained. “Obviously, I looked him in the eyes and said, ‘Man, I’m not trying to do that.’ I believe he understood. I believe Gerrit can do something next time he walks past the Audi sign (in front of the Yankees dugout). It was just one too many (dustings) for my taste,“ Gerrit Cole explained.
Gerrit Cole and Manoah States
While many pitchers struggled after the sticky stuff prohibition, Gerrit Cole finished second in Cy Young voting in 2021, with a 3.23 ERA over 181.1 innings and 243 strikeouts. Meanwhile, Manoah established himself as one of MLB’s greatest young pitchers, pitching 196.2 innings with a 2.24 ERA in 2022 to earn his first career All-Star berth.
With Gerrit Cole in the midst of his long-term contract with New York and Manoah desired by Toronto, these two will be seeing a lot of each other on the field for the foreseeable future.