Struggling Yankee Alex Verdugo Claims He's Allergic To His Batting Gloves

In what sounds like the baseball equivalent of the "My dog ate my homework" excuse, New York Yankees struggling outfielder Alex Verdugo is blaming being allergic to his batting gloves as to why he has been playing awful this year. 

Speaking with NJ.com, Verudo, who the Yankees acquired this past season, says the team recently made him meet with various doctors and even an allergist to get a closer look into why his hands continued to develop rashes and blisters, which they believe could explain his poor .235 batting average - nearly 50 points below his career .281 average.

Verdugo says that he told the team that his "…hands hurt. They blister. Then it opens and starts scabbing. It’s like super dry skin. I’ve been dealing with this since they started barking in ‘21." As a result, the left fielder had to constantly wrap his hands and knuckles with medical tape until finally someone from the Yankees training staff thought there may be something more going on. 

Turns out, they were right!

‘YOU’RE ALLERGIC TO YOUR BATTING GLOVES'

After speaking with the allergist, Verdugo says that they suggested that he could be allergic to his Franklin batting gloves. 

"You're allergic to your batting gloves," the allergist told a stunned Verdugo after they determined that he was having reactions to cobalt and chromate - two metals that are found in, where else, but batting gloves. 

"Chromate is used in curing the leather, and cobalt is found in the color dyes," Verdugo continued. According to NJ.com's researchers, only 2% of the population is allergic to cobalt, while 6% is allergic to chromate, which are better odds than the Chicago White Sox winning the World Series this year.

Unfortunately for Verdugo, the batting gloves aren't the only thing that could be giving him his painful reactions. After speaking with doctors, the media outlet informed him that the two metal substances are also found in tattoos, something of which the outfielder has plenty of.

"My tattoos? Man, I never thought of that," Verdugo responded. 

HOW DID IT TAKE SO LONG? 

As a Yankees fan, I have a TON of questions here. 

First off, it's good to know that anytime Alex Verdugo is up at the plate, that he's essentially poisoned as he continues to wear his Franklin batting gloves. (After being contacted by his agent, Franklin said they are working on manufacturing special ones using a different chemical process. He may also have to take an injectable compound to offset the metal.) 

Second, how the heck did someone just now say something about an issue that Verdugo has apparently been dealing with for over three years now?! The Yankees are "THE" New York Yankees, and have unlimited resources and funds to help their players and access to the best doctors. Yet, it even took them months to be like "Hey man, you should probably see a doctor about your constantly bleeding hands." Gee, you think? There was nothing that struck them a little bit weird earlier on that NOBODY else's hands were having the same kind of reaction?

To make matters even more frustrating for Yankees fans, as they see their leftfielder continue to be an automatic out anytime he steps to the plate, manager Aaron Boone wasn't even informed that Alex was allergic or about the batting glove issue whatsoever.

"This is the first I’m hearing of it," Boone told reporters despite Verdugo's condition being known for nearly a month. 

The leftfielder now faces a major predicament. Once Franklin does give him the new batting gloves that he's not allergic to, everyone will soon find out if it was in fact the culprit for why he has been playing so poorly.

But if he continues to struggle, then he can't use the gloves anymore as an excuse… Maybe, he just stinks and doesn't have it anymore. 

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