Rabbit Ball 1987: Unravelling a Baseball Mystery

[@floydfanTN]

We should have known the ball was juiced when Wade Boggs hit double digit HRs.

[@saurondp]

It's amazing how many younger baseball fans have no idea about 1987. As someone who was alive and watching that year, it was definitely a noticeable anomaly without having to even look at stats. There've been tons of researchers and journalists who have looked into the issue over the years, and nothing definitive has ever been proven. However, one article I read (can't seem to find it now) had pinpointed the timeframe that it started, which was around the beginning of September of 1986 and lasting through the end of the 1987 season, IIRC (can't find the article to confirm). And to add more confusion to the mix, there were definitely players whose stats seemed unaffected by it. I think it'll forever remain a mystery.

[@ice-iu3vv]

i thought mlb changed suppliers for the balls in 1987, and switched back in 88. i remember that as if its factual. however i'm second guessing my memory for madela effect because of your claims ("tons of researchers and journalists have looked into it", "nothing been proven", "forever remain a mystery"). i was 20 years old in 87, and watched baseball from age 9 in 76 to age 42 in 2009. its easy to vividly remember 1987. what i dont get is why its such a mystery that researchers cant solve if i and other baseball fans recall mlb issuing statements in early 88 that answer the question conclusively.

[@hugosegura6287]

The only two players who’s stats were unaffected the next year were Darryl Strawberry and Jose Canseco.

[@hugosegura6287]

1987 made you believe that Brooks Jacoby, was a star!!!😂😂😂

[@saurondp]

@@ice-iu3vv I don't think it was a case of changing suppliers, as Rawlings was the sole supplier at that time. It's possible that they may have changed the baseball creation process slightly during that time, and then changed it back. All I really recall is that the jump in the home run rate actually started in the tail part of the 1986 season. It's possible that someone did track it down and find out a more definitive answer, it's just hard to find it now.

[@6thwilbury2331]

I had the 1985 and 1987 seasons in Strat-O-Matic, and played out the entire 1987 Blue Jays actual schedule. However, I effectively benched Willie Upshaw and used a platoon of Fred McGriff and Cecil Fielder at 1B. Everything else was pretty much the same. My version of the Jays hit something like 224 homers, very close to their actual total. The team batting average ended up being one point off, too. That's how accurate that game was. (Yes, I was perhaps the nerdiest 15-year-old ever.) Fast forward 20 years, and I was talking to Lloyd Moseby in the press box before a game. He was blown away at how well I remembered this hold teams, right down to tidbits like his home run totals went 9-9-9-18-18-18 in his first six seasons. It was all based on playing the 1987 Jays on Strat-O-Matic. Some of the stats are still ingrained in my memory. But yeah, 1987 was weird with homers, and it sort of skewed my baseline for a "normal" year for a good power hitter. e.g. in my head, Wally Joyner and Will Clark were consistent 30-HR hitters throughout their careers. In fact, each did it once... in 1987.

[@TheGodYouWishYouKnew]

To be fair to will Clark, he hit 29 homers in 1988. That’s like hitting 45 in 1987. Lol

[@ltjjenkins]

Yeah you're point about that year giving a false long term baseline is noticeable when you talk HOF. When the real numbers are presented there wasn't a whole bunch of 87s and it surprises some. Clark a good example.

[@cardboardempire]

I met Rance Mulliniks. Nice guy. He signed my card and called to wish me a Happy New Year.

[@loungezinger]

I also hear he has a nasty level 19 mage...

[@robbmanchester5747]

I remember … The Oakland A’s announcers did a demonstration from their hotel room balcony dropping “old” and “new” balls … crazy difference … the juiced balls had more an effect than the “juiced“ players …

[@decker528]

If it was a turbulent time in Haiti, it just means Haiti existed

[@sporer_]

Yo that Rance Roast was diabolical 😂

[@chrisdelisle3954]

It did feel like SOMETHING was in the baseballs that year. I remember Alan Trammell having 28 HR's that year. Those aren't Brady Anderson-level suspicious numbers, but it did seem an inordinate amount for him at the time. But not everybody had career highs in HR's that year, so...I don't know either.

[@TheGodYouWishYouKnew]

Boggs was an even more glaring example

[@Jose_Hunters_EWF_Remixes]

I want to talk about Wade Boggs, one of the greatest hitters of my lifetime. From Baseball Reference: 18 seasons 90+ games 14 seasons 123+ games 5 AL Batting Titles 3010 Lifetime Hits .328 Lifetime Batting Average Lifetime stats, per 162 games 100 Runs 200 Hits 94 Walks 49 Strikeouts Highest single season HR total: 24 in 1987 Next 6 highest season HR totals: 11 8 8 8 7 7 EDIT: Forgot to mention In 1987, Boggs won his 4th batting title with .363 average Only two other years did he do better than this .368 in 1985 .366 in 1988 It's safe to say he wasn't swinging for the fences in 1987

[@brokl26]

All I know is that, “Nobody puts Baby in a corner!”

[@NotFadeAway522]

Guys like Matt Nokes, Larry Sheets, Mike Pagliarulo, and Larry Parrish hitting so many home runs are noticeable, but guys like Dale Murphy and Andrew Dawson also had career highs that year. Murphy obliterated his career high, even compared to his two MVP years. McGwire hit more home runs in '87 than any year until '96. The totals were vastly more than any year in that era and there's no way it was random, so the ball had to be different. The same thing seemed to happen in '94, by the way. It just isn't remembered like '87 because of the strike.

[@franklingordon3354]

As someone who remembers that year well I gotta say that was by far the best and most logical comment on this video 👏

[@bear7098]

The home run era whether steroids or not has coincided quite closely with my complete indifference to the sport I obsessed over as a kid and loved to follow as an adult. Home run derbies are boring.

[@darthbauer5153]

Bro Rance caught a straw for no reason.

[@fnregistration]

It was both. We know the players were juiced back then, it started with the Bash Brothers. The ball was juiced in '87 but not '88. Intentionally or unintentionally? Who knows.

[@TimPR771]

Ken Phelps was always a power hitter. He hit three more HR that season in only a handful fewer PAs. He just wouldn’t get regular playing time because he couldn’t hit LHPs.

[@frodofraggins]

It was definitely juiced but I never understood why someone like Don Mattingly didn't get a boost in power that year. I definitely don't think Boggs juiced that year to gain the bump.

[@siobhangear2866]

I think that Mattingly's back problems had already started to significantly affect him by 1987, but that whole Yankees team really is conspicuously unanomalous.

[@theirine17]

In 1989, Fred McGriff led the AL in HR with 36. 😐

[@jtdavis62]

It's like traffic. I drive my wife to work in Chicago's Loop 3 days a week. Some mornings, traffic is chaotic and heavy everywhere. Other mornings, it's lighter and way easier. I can never figure out why or predict what it will be like, except for maybe sometimes when the weather is bad. So in 1987, maybe pitchers hung more curveballs for no particular reason. Maybe some batters got lucky more than average. There's no rhyme or reason. Nothing happens for a reason. Sometimes, the details are more random than at other times and in other circumstances.

[@loungezinger]

Id think it should be possible to test a sample of balls from any year to test their cor and compression etc to finally get an answer...

[@miguelangelsucrelares5009]

It was mainly because of the balls, and, to a lesser degree, PEDs. Yes, I know you said Haiti balls were still in use until 1990, but it would be too much of a coincidence that both the HR surge and the opening of the Costa Rica factory are not correlated. My hypothesis is that while the balls said "Haiti", at least some, if not most, were actully manufactured in Costa Rica using equipment taken from Haiti, but with slightly different process or materials. Setting up the factory in CR was most likely a rushed process as a result of the coup in Haiti.

[@1rwjwith]

I think your conclusion is right. Obviously there can be variance in the manufacture of baseballs….simple as that.

[@Pocketrocket-pj1us]

Is that the old Exhibition Stadium? A few years before the Skydome was completed? Wow

[@robertspearko8809]

It was the recovery from the 86 year of the scuffball.

[@dereksupernaut]

6:30 your argument for why Owners & Commissioner did not collude over Juiced Balls is they did collude over player's salaries???

[@Nein1no]

Just in case you didn't watch for just for a few more sentences after he said that, you might have also heard that's because the owners and league failed so terribly at hiding their collusion. If they somehow got it together to hide that they intentionally juiced a baseball, it would be one of the best coverups in the world... I doubt it. I wouldn't doubt them ever trying mind you, but I think we'd have found evidence of ANYTHING of that sort by now.

[@FrankBeingFrank]

As far as the blue jays amazing 87 I think part of it was that the balls ended up wound a little tighter then usual which could be from how/when/where they were stored I also think that because they played in a dome which is temp and humidity controlled and the hotter the baseball gets the farther it’ll travel and they controlled their own weather so that was def an advantage to them plus they had a pretty sick lineup back then George bell was no slouch and Fred McGriff the crime dog flat out hurt baseballs when he hit them Personally I think seasons like 87 have to do with lots of stuff … a lot of people don’t think about it but the weather patterns and warmer climate/avg temps has more to do with it then just about anything. People also forget that in the 80’s the way the game was played was changing. Relief pitchers were just starting to be used more including specialty relief situations like bringing in a lefty just to face a left etc etc . I don’t even think every team used or had somoene marked as their dedicated closer in 87, some teams def did but not every team believed in that role esp the 1 inning version and its importance then . Sure by the 90’s that would all change after players like Lee smith fJohn Franco eckersley thigpen Gregg Olson showed dominance in that 9th inning 3 outs almost pitching every night but in the 80’s their was alot of trial by fire stuff going on Another thing is that the caliber of pitchers just weren’t as elite as the crop that came before them, some were throwing harder but that does a pitcher . Don’t get me wrong they had some good ones but I feel like outside of gooden and Clemens you’d be hard pressed to name a true star pitcher that started playing in the early to mid 80’s newer… Greg Maddux was just literally starting his career in Chicago in 87 so some of the best ones outside of Clemens and gooden (who lets be honest was already on a decline by 87) were Dave steib Bret saberhagen orel hershiser sid Fernandez frank viola Dave Stewart teddy higuera Mario Soto and Mike Scott and your avg fan just read that and said WHO I mean players like Rick sutcliffe nolan Ryan Bert blyleven jack morris Guidry Charlie hough and Steve Carlton were all a decade or most of them more then a decade into their careers and players with a name like Fernando kind of fizzled out in the early part of the decade And lastly the 80’s were when players actually started to work out and weight train and take better care of their bodies. Still not everyone did but a lot more players were jacked esp if you compare players from the 70’s who were more likely to smoke in the dugout drink like a fish and have pot bellies to the players from the 80’s you can def see weight programs starting to be introduced and used more often which I think ultimately led to the steroid use in the 90’s think about if anyone who’s worked out had hit a wall where they don’t see any progress or change and it usually takes years but it’s frustrating so you have players starting to lift in the 80’s and take care of themselves and by the 90’s a lot of them have hit that wall and started to look at how to get past that wall and start or progress again and boom someone does steroids/ hgh which wasn’t even banned and shows gains, maybe has the first ever 40/40 season proving to everyone who knew that it was working and slowly the secret starts to get out and boom by the mid 90’s you have users or more and more teams who then bring in more users etc etc So yeah I think it was just a perfect storm of position players starting to become stronger and Being better athletes , star pitching names being few and far between , add that to the fact that starters were not not Pitching as deep into games due to the use of more, a lot of times lesser talented pitchers in games as this new wider spread idea and philosophy of the middle relief pitcher , the setup man, the specialty match up pitchers and of course the closer started to become way more common, accepted and in some cases expected. Also and this is a guess but I bet it has at least a little to do with it but weather conditions being a little warmer then usual So their is no easy answer because their is no one reason. It’s a mixture of all these things that created this perfect storm of baseballs being crushed at a rate that for the time unless every team had a roster with multiple prime babe Ruth’s on it, no one ever thought would be possible

[@LocoDonaltron]

I don't mind the juiced balls. I want to see more runs. Low scoring games is the reason baseball is my 3rd favorite sport behind basketball and football. 🤷🏽‍♂️😂

[@spencermarkowitz1749]

At 10:10 there is a machine where baseballs come out in one of 3 categories: COM PRACT PRO is anyone sure what this is? It looks like baseballs off the assembly line go in one end and are tested and sorted. The best would be for professional game use. Then the mildly-imperfect are for practice. I don't know what COM is - commercial quality? Between the other two? If so that brings up the possibility that 1987 was a calibration issue. With a brand new facility in the DR it might be that there was a quality control issue - and, perhaps, a shortage of the top-quality PRO balls? How would you deal with a shortage of the best equipment? Loosen your standards in the sorting process! So to make up for a smaller percentage of top-notch balls, now you start letting in more balls which are borderline. Commercial and practice-grade balls start leaking into the Professional supply - even those from Haiti get "shifted" to meet their quotas. Then in 1988 Rawlings tackles the quality issues and resets the calibration!

[@jasongray9696]

There are a lot of confounding factors. The shift in manufacturing is suspicious. There does not need to be a single cause, it could be a confluence of contributors. But, I would be inclined to attribute some of the increase hr rate to balls made by a new plant. If the balls not made in Haiti were juiced (and they didn't have to even be a majority of the balls used to contribute to an increase in home runs) that could account for some of the difference. As a run of thumb whenever a new factory comes online (especially in another country), they usually take some time to get the product up to the specs of the previous maker. This could also account for the decline in HRs the next year, as the balls coming out of Costa Rica (?) were manufacture more in line with the specifications used in Haiti. That doesn't explain all of it...but it would be worth looking at the balls in circulation that year that didn't come from Haiti.

[@garygenerous8982]

Your final theory is mine for both 1987 and 2019. Not something deliberate done by MLB or the players. Maybe slight differences in supply of components or as you noted human factors happened to make balls fly further from those batch runs which happened to concentrate during those seasons.

[@christopherb.8465]

Wade Boggs hit 118 homers in 18 years, 24 of them in 1987.

[@RedBeerd]

4;14... The MyBaseball guy!!

[@victorherreraguzman5014]

I guess it could be a mix of everything. MLB has juiced balls to make the game more spectacular and with homers on and off, besides the steroids, not being under the radar or not having the resources as we do today, are more than possible. Also, corked bats could be inside this mix; even CR balls could have been labeled as Haiti ones during the production ramp up and materials/vendors transference between plants, so no one would notice it (this, speaking from a Supply Chain/Production perspective). Does any one knows if there are any documentaries that talk about it?

[@Pocketrocket-pj1us]

Not bad on the Papa Doc. Duvallier, pronounciation but nobody puts Baby in a corner!!! Fun video btw. 1987 was my first full season as a true fan, following Every game. Cheers, from Montreal Quebec Canada Merci Beaucoup

[@Pocketrocket-pj1us]

I was 10 or 11, watching my first season as a real fan, so please excuse my memory but I remember the commentators mention the height of the mound was changed around this time. Don't know what difference this makes but I think it gave the pitchers some advantage?? Anyone recall that? Cheers from Montreal Quebec Canada

[@sethtate2079]

I think that was back in Bob Gibson's day. They lowered the mound 6 inches. Late 60,s I believe.

[@Music--ng8cd]

Is it possible to do a deep dive into the pitchers from 1986 to 1987?

[@johndoe-x5v2p]

0:54 one of those teams dont exist anymore 😔😔

[@chrisphillips348]

Canseco was juiced but Macguire was not according to Canseco’s testimony. He said Mark didn’t start until the next season

[@sircrush3530]

People didn't keep any home run or even foul balls from that season? McGwire had to have some out there. Have a lab dissect one and compare to other balls from around that time or even not around it.

[@Nein1no]

Given the evidence of ball production issues plaguing various leagues in recent history, it's very likely that some (yet unknown) variance in the production of the balls (that we are not privy to) was to blame. So I do think it was incidental. Dr. Meredith Wills has gone on to show that how tightly the seams are can greatly impact how far the ball travels. I suspect both MLB and Rawlings had no idea that such a seemingly minor variance could impact how far the ball travels THAT much. Like, out of the factory, how do you even measure that if the balls are handmade? Measuring that even today is a challenge. So if a new batch of employees were 'winding' up the baseballs tighter than their fellow employees, that 'could' explain it if all the materials and quality of the materials have been accounted for. However, this is just a hunch. It could very well be just a coincidence. But like Mr. Garak said (not verbatim), "We shouldn't trust coincidences".

[@TheMailmanOfSteel]

Yeah, in the Bash Brothers' case, I'm pretty sure it wasn't just the ball that was "juiced" lmao.

[@wizard1687]

I remember Wade Boggs hitting 24 homers. Don't know if he had another double digit season

[@Music--ng8cd]

He did hit 11 in 1994. It should be noted that Boggs' best years were 1985-1989, although 1987 was certainly his best.

[@bwink23]

This was the first thing I thought of, Boggs.

[@markjerorsr1495]

They learned to not juice the ball but turned a blind eye when the players juiced themselves. They took the money and ran then ostracised the players they profited from.

[@dukedematteo1995]

1994 would have surpassed 1987 had it been a full season.

[@MidnightDriver82]

It's all about the TV ratings

[@valeriekeefe8898]

Sparky Lyle covered the topic in "The Year I Owned The Yankees" if that helps.

[@Pocketrocket-pj1us]

2:15 86 Fleer. Fleer had some nice sets, after their first in 81 (81 was good but 82 had the worst photography, of any set I've ever seen, with many cards looking like someone's last photo, before getting killed or kidnapped. Check out some examples online. It's like they used a dispossible camera, or Polaroids. Regardless, it was better than Donruss. Their first year was a nightmare and might be the slopiest set I've ever seen. I once bought a full box on eBay and no joke, Got only 53 different cards!!!! Let that one sink in. 53, in a set of 660!! I actually wrote down a list to show a fiend because I knew he wouldn't beleive it! Man was I pissed. But you can't make a complaint about a box that was issued 20 years ago! LOL But there was a bright side. I got 37 Ricky Henderson, 2nd year cards and 52 Tim Raines rookies!! As a Montrealer and Expos fan. I was pleased, to say the least. On a sadder note. It's now been 20 years since the Expos moved to Washington and now, history repeats, as the Oakland Athletics, or A's, are on their way out. If any Oakland fans are out there. We feel your pain and hope you don't have to go 20 years, cheering for the Giants?? Me, I just watched my A.L. team. The Red Sox and with help from former Expo, Cy Young winner Pedro Martinez. They came back from 0-3 to beat the Yankees, sweep the cardinals and break the Baby's curse. Sice then, I stopped collecting Baseball cards, besides the years 69 (The Mick's last card) to 2005. It really knocks your city down a few pegs, losing a sports team.

[@Pocketrocket-pj1us]

4:00 Dawson had terrible knees, playing on the Astroturf in Montreal his whole career and as MLB was ending the 'Colussion' scandal. Dawson was able to leave, play on grass, smoke some (JJ) and become one of the few players to win the MVP, playing on a dead last place team!! That had some fans calling foul. Yeah, your the best player on your team but the team was painfully bad. The ironic thing, is that if Dawson would have stayed in Montreal (and was healthy....maybe playing less). The Expos would have won the pennant over the Cardinals z( the final standing, had Montreal finish only 4 games back and still in the race, going nto the last few days. Instead, it became one more what if'?

[@Pocketrocket-pj1us]

Did you say Tom House, or Horse. I don't remember this guy and want to check.

[@nyjsackexchange]

Crime Dog contributed to the Bell on Bell violence

[@rapalbumdepot7648]

I ❤️ TIGER STADIUM

[@kurtwagner350]

Honestly it was probably a combo of the last 2. more people were on roids. More interestingly your Haiti debunk misses that even though the balls would’ve been phased in slowly some still would’ve got in, this would also explain why the stats weren’t evenly applied across all teams and players. Because some teams would have lower stock or go through balls faster and get more “Rabbit balls”. Personally I agree MLB probably couldn’t have kept it a secret even if it was an accident they were aware of. To me that means it was something they weren’t aware of, I.E the latter 2 explanations. To me it’s pretty damning evidence that so many players were adamant there was something wonky about the balls that year.

[@charlesezrarevmongoosecane5097]

Cheaply made balls creates Home Runs

[@Medevah]

The ball was juiced. Cut one open and look inside. Also, take a look at Mexico-US trade relations from 1985 to 1987, specifically the textiles industry.

[@jameshudson169]

the nationals won the world series in 1924.

[@foxyfoxington2651]

Probably aliens... Or maybe Bigfoot.

[@davidmorris6254]

Juiced balls, it makes no sense otherwise for one season and only one season, unlike the steriods from later.

[@chrisschaeffer9661]

How bout Canseco and Macgwire we're Juicing.

[@StephenTrunkwalter]

I understand steriod use considered juiced but how does MLB juice the balls?

[@siobhangear2866]

You just change the manufacturing process. Make the total material one with less give and more bounce and it'll go farther.

[@bwink23]

Balls wound tighter

[@Hangtightforme]

Mark Mcguire's balls were juiced.

[@jasontstein]

The ball was juiced.

[@Pocketrocket-pj1us]

You need to look at the big picture and you will find the answers. 95 was the year that the season did not have a Winner, because of the lock-out, or strike and attendance was not looking good, as the fans were disillusioned with the itch bitches, wanting more money. What does MLB do? They add more juice than O.J lol

[@Jake-yx7ct]

Tighter windings will make for a slicker sphere. If you have made a million or 2 of them what are you going to do with those boxes of pearls in those warehouses?Yep you're gonna send em out to the teams and leagues. Roids have been around like forever. Relax and have another beer.

[@sircliffordmalcolmjac5870]

Call me crazy, but i doubt it would be that hard to do the juiced ball. I doubt it would have to be some kind of giant conspiracy, the mlb wouldnt even have to really involve anybody except the baseball company. Money talks too, and anybody who would have to be involved would all stand to benefit in their businesses. I remember a guy on a video, who was an "expert" talking about how teams wouldnt know anything their players were doing because they just dont have the means or knowledge to do that! That is obvious BS though, a person off the street with a grand could hire a PI, so why wouldnt a multi billion dollar company know EVERYTHING they possibly could? I get thats a strange comparison, but it just goes to the fact that these owners and the league would probably do most anything to get their profits up/have any type of edge they can get! Most billionaires dont get that way by playing fair i guess is what im really trying to say! Sorry for the rant!😬😬😂😂

[@quincee3376]

My jays blew the division to Detroit. Oh well. Detroit earned it.

[@jeremyrushby3932]

What year did amphetamines get banned

[@rapalbumdepot7648]

Shit, that was like 2008 or something. Around there. Also- the amphetamine issue happens to be a surprisingly vital element to understanding the whole pace-of-play thing 👈

[@LordTeaboBaggins]

@@rapalbumdepot7648amphetamines and steroids were finally banned from MLB in 2005.

[@nyjsackexchange]

What mystery It was the dawn of the steroid era

[@dereksupernaut]

IT AINT HARD TO TELL... MLB was getting bad press for colluding to keep star salaries down, Tim Raines and Andre Dawson could not get offers despite being top players... MLB used the HR (by making the baseball tighter) to distract fans from the owner's greed... Wade Boggs hit 24HR's, with 11 being his 2nd best total... '86 MLB teams scored 4.4 runs, in '87 4.7 runs, and in '89 they scored 4.1 runs... '87 MLB almost hit 650 more HRs as a league, in '88 THEY HIT 1280 LESS HRS THAN '87... only the changing of the baseball, or maybe the strike zone can explain this; obviously not steroids... fax!!!

[@jude999]

The game was so much better when people hit to get on base and advance the runner

[@mikeshoe74]

When was this? the 1800's?

[@zach7193]

Rabbit Ball? First time hearing about it.

[@rogertayloRRR]

Tony slugged over "500"?

[@stephenjones5132]

Slugged as in slugging percentage. His .511 in 1987 was well above his career number

[@CrustyWhiteBread]

Lol ..somebody gon be triggered😂😂 Best baseball channel on KZbin. (Edit) Wait.,.I'm triggered.

[@StageRight123]

Yeah, no... This isn't Baseball Doesn't Exist. It's still a good channel though.

[@jtom1309]

I'm not sayin' that it was aliens, but, it was aliens

[@Otisbxk]

My ass it was an accident. MLB juiced the balls. People wanna see home runs

[@mikeshoe74]

Then why not juice the balls every year?