Yankees DJ LeMahieu supports MLB's crackdown of grip-enhancing substances

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New York Yankees infielder D.J. LeMahieu appeared to be one of the few voices coming out in support of Major League Baseball’s crackdown on pitchers using grip-enhancing substances.

MLB issued a release earlier this week threatening an ejection and suspension for pitchers or position players caught with a foreign substance. The new guidance also gave umpires broad power to inspect players if they feel they were using some kind of sticky substance.

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While LeMahieu’s teammate Gerrit Cole and other star pitchers were perplexed by the move, LeMahieu told reporters Thursday he was "glad" MLB was leveling the playing field.

"I’m kind of glad everyone’s on the same level now," he said, via the New York Post. "Collectively everyone can agree that [the use of foreign substances were] over the top, and I don’t know if the new balls had a factor in that as well, where all of a sudden you’re combining both of them. I don’t know."

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He added that some of the pitches he’s seen this year were not like anything he’s seen before.

LeMahieu finished third in American League MVP voting last year and was the batting champion in the league. It was the second consecutive time he finished in the top five in MVP voting. This season, his batting average is down more than 100 points.

In 64 games, LeMahieu is batting .261 with a .680 OPS and four home runs.

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MLB batting averages have been low across the board. The entire league was hitting a cumulative .236 through May. It was the lowest since 1968.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.