Fired Angels employee names players who used illegal product

Houston Astros star Gerrit Cole’s text message to former Angels clubhouse manager Brian “Bubba” Harkins was sent on January 17, 2019 at 11:39 am.

“Hey Bubba, this is Gerrit Cole, I was wondering if you could help me with this sticky situation,” the pitcher wrote, adding a wink emoji. “We don’t see you until May, but we have a few road games in April in cold places. The things I had last year seize up when it’s cold.

The trade between Cole, now the New York Yankees ace, and Harkins, who was sacked last March for supplying illegal doctoral ball substances to visiting pitchers, was submitted to Superior Court on Thursday. County of Orange by an attorney claiming Harkins had been sentenced to “public scapegoat” in baseball’s efforts to crack down on the use of foreign substances.

Harkins, who spent nearly four decades with the Angels, was fired after the Angels learned through an MLB investigation that he was providing a mixture of sticky substances to visiting pitchers to help them master baseball.

Harkins, 55, filed a defamation suit against the Angels and Major League Baseball in Orange County Superior Court on August 28. The Angels and the MLB filed a motion to dismiss the complaint on November 2.

In opposition to the motion, filed Thursday, Harkins claimed that many angels have used his rosin and pine tar concoction over the years, “including Troy Percival, Brendan Donnelly, Tyler Chatwood, Kevin Jepsen and, more most recently, Cam Bedrosian, Keynan Middleton, Yusmeiro Petit, Luke Bard, Matt Andriese, Dylan Peters, Jose Suarez and Dylan Bundy. “

Percival, the closest angels from 1995 to 2004, admitted in September that he had taught Harkins how to make the pine tar and rosin mixture in spring training “mainly because it was so dry in Arizona. and that the bullets were so smooth there.

Harkins also claimed MLB had evidence involving several star pitchers – including Cole, Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Felix Hernandez, Corey Kluber and Adam Wainwright – for using foreign substances to improve their grip on the ball.

Harkins was sacked by former Angels general manager Billy Eppler on March 3, three days after the league issued a memo to teams saying it would implement a long ignored policy banning the use of illegal substances to improve performance. grip of a pitcher. Hitters rarely complain because better grip usually means better control – and less chance of getting hit in the head by a fastball at 97 mph.

Harkins was questioned by MLB and Angels attorneys on March 26 as part of an investigation into the use of illegal substances.

Harkins’ attorney Daniel Rasmussen said in Thursday’s filing that the Angels “didn’t want their players to be disciplined and ashamed” and that MLB didn’t want to face another “scandal” in the wake of the controversy over the theft of Astros signs. Rasmussen said Harkins was called a “traitor, cheater and fraud” by fans following reports of his dismissal and that he is now unemployed.

“Our point is that Bubba was made a one-man scapegoat, and that they conducted this ‘investigation’ in an effort to protect the players,” Rasmussen said. “No player has been disciplined, and Bubba has been hammered through it all. His reputation has been sacked.

Rasmussen has said he will seek at least $ 4 million in damages if the case goes to trial. A spokesperson for the Angels said the team could not comment on the pending legal issues. A Jan. 21 hearing has been scheduled for a judge to determine whether the case will go ahead.

Harkins’ filing on Thursday included statements from former Grand Leaguers Wally Joyner, who spent seven years of his 16-year career in Anaheim, and Mike Sweeney, who spent 13 years of his 16-year career in Kansas City.

Both claimed that Harkins “was not a traitor to his team” and that “many people in the Angels organization were familiar with the mixture of rosin and pine tar that Harkins used to make pitchers.” Many Angels pitchers have used it over the years.

Vince Willet, who worked as a batboy and clubhouse assistant for the Angels from 2009 to 2017, also submitted a statement on behalf of Harkins.

“Bubba didn’t make this mix in secret,” Willet wrote. “As far as I know, all Angels pitchers, coaches and managers were aware of and encouraged the use of Bubba’s blend. I specifically remember one occasion when Angels pitcher CJ Wilson approached Bubba and I in the hall between the two clubs. During the conversation, Wilson referred to the mix as “pen bag stuff”. “