GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX) — Nearly a dozen volunteers gathered in the home field dugout on Wednesday to rub down more than 400 baseballs for the Junior College World Series.
"It's a lot easier to grip the pitches and throw it. It also helps when balls are put in play, it keeps infield dirt off of it," said JUCO volunteer and former GJHS pitcher Brett Woyteck.
JUCO Committee Member Jeff Hansen says they use the same mud for JUCO that they use in Major League Baseball.
"Just a thin layer over the whole thing," Woyteck said. "You don't want too much because then it gets heavier in the pitcher's hand, but you also don't want too little. It's a fine line."
The only rule to follow when rubbing down baseballs is do NOT get mud in the seams. "The pitchers will most likely throw it out before they even throw a pitch with it," Woyteck said.