Author of the article: Patrick Kennedy Publishing date: May 07, 2021 • 2 hours ago • 5 minute read Baseballs and bats lasted longer in the author's day, thanks to a succession of repairs with small nails and plenty of electrical tape. Photo by Patrick Kennedy /For The Whig-Standard Article content The thought surfaced in my cranial vault while I was watching the broadcast of a recent Major League Baseball game. In the first inning alone, the home plate umpire tossed out 17 brand new balls. Not once did the masked arbiter give the discarded ball so much as a courtesy glance for damage. So I wondered: What’s happened to the baseballs used in big-league games?