<P> Before the use of rubbing mud , baseballs were rubbed in a mixture of water and infield soil , but this method usually discolored the ball 's leather surface . Other alternatives at the time were tobacco juice , shoe polish , and soil from under stadium bleachers . They were able to successfully take off the sheen from baseballs , but at the same time , they also damaged and scratched the ball 's leather . While Lena Blackburne was a third - base coach for the Philadelphia Athletics baseball team , an umpire complained to him about the method used at the time , prompting Blackburne in 1938 to set out in search of better mud to use to rub against baseballs . Later that decade , Blackburne discovered the rubbing mud 's location ( said to be `` near '' Palmyra , New Jersey ) and founded the company that he used to sell it . According to the company , the entire American League used the mud soon after its discovery , and by the 1950s , it was in use by every major league team , along with some minor league and college teams . </P>
<P> Before the use of rubbing mud , baseballs were rubbed in a mixture of water and infield soil , but this method usually discolored the ball 's leather surface . Other alternatives at the time were tobacco juice , shoe polish , and soil from under stadium bleachers . They were able to successfully take off the sheen from baseballs , but at the same time , they also damaged and scratched the ball 's leather . While Lena Blackburne was a third - base coach for the Philadelphia Athletics baseball team , an umpire complained to him about the method used at the time , prompting Blackburne in 1938 to set out in search of better mud to use to rub against baseballs . Later that decade , Blackburne discovered the rubbing mud 's location ( said to be `` near '' Palmyra , New Jersey ) and founded the company that he used to sell it . According to the company , the entire American League used the mud soon after its discovery , and by the 1950s , it was in use by every major league team , along with some minor league and college teams . </P>
where does the mud for baseballs come from
where does the mud for baseballs come from
said to be `` near '' Palmyra , New Jersey
said to be `` near '' Palmyra , New Jersey