Dave Johnson - Pine Tar Detective

Baseball Card Friday: Dave Johnson, Baltimore Orioles 1969

What a card.  His face looks like someone just asked him to solve an algebra equation. 

And check out his right hand.  What’s going on there?  It looks like masking tape.  Is that legal to have that on your throwing hand?  Quick, someone tell the umpire.

Mr. Dave Johnson is now the manager of the N.L. East leaders Washington Nationals and has been in the news for telling the umpires to check Tampa Bay’s pitcher Joel Peralta glove for a foreign substance.  The men in blue found pine tar, Mr. Peralta got kicked out of the game and received an 8 game suspension. 

Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon called Mr. Johnson out for snitching.

Mr. Peralta use to pitch for the Nationals so that's how Dave Johnson knew that Mr. Peralta might use pine tar. 

Pine tar doesn’t give the pitcher a distinct advantage, it just helps you grip the ball better, similar to a Resin bag.  Word on the street is over half the pitchers in the majors use pine tar.

I don’t know all of baseball’s unwritten laws, but as a man, you don’t rat a guy out to the umpires.   

If you think the guy is wrong for doing it, why didn’t someone stop him in the past, like when he was playing in Washington?

As a man, if you think it going to effect the outcome of the game, you give Mr. Peralta a heads up that you know what he’s up too.  Tampa bay is not even in National League much less your division.

Again I don’t know all of the unwritten rules, but maybe there is squealing in baseball?  

I know one thing, Dave Johnson is a squirrel.

 Washington National's Manager Dave Johnson