MLB Rosin Bags - questions for the manufacturer?

[Tangled Up In Red]

On Friday I'm going to visit the solo dude who makes all of the rosin bags for MLB (he also makes the Pelican Grip Dip that has been used along Spider Tack for spin rate testing). He also makes Pelican Bat Stick (excellent, supplies MLB tams incl Sox) and other products.
He's an old friend and baseball opponent - and occasional teammate when we play at San Quentin.
I'm going to check out his factory workshop near the ballpark (Oracle Park) and see what's up, how he manages and what the process is like.

SoSH -- LMK if you have any questions you want asked... and maybe even answered?

Huzzah!

 

[LogansDad]

Why'd he have to go and get Scherzer suspended? I like watching that dude pitch.

Kidding, this is really cool and I look forward to your post-adventure story.

 

[uncannymanny]

The article on him is paywalled. Love to know how he got the gig and what was being done before.

 

[Tangled Up In Red]

The article on him is paywalled. Love to know how he got the gig and what was being done before.

I believe teams were using multiple rosin bags from different suppliers.
He was known by MLB since a number of teams started buying his bat stick (on player recommendations) over the past decade. I'll get more detail on how they locked in on him as the rosin bag guy (he was making a few prior, but far from his bread and butter)

 

[koufax32]

We saw David Cone’s explanation of how to make rosin even stickier. Does he know of any other combinations that work really well?

Wasn’t it Bullfrog sunscreen and rosin that Clay Buchholz used?

 

[Tangled Up In Red]

We saw David Cone’s explanation of how to make rosin even stickier. Does he know of any other combinations that work really well?

Wasn’t it Bullfrog sunscreen and rosin that Clay Buchholz used?

Yeah, here was the Cone video using a Pelican rosin bag.
I recall Clay and especially Daisuke using Bullfrog w rosin. Dice used to rub his forearms before nearly every pitch.
I'll find out what else was (is?) used to enhance.

 

[Time to Mo Vaughn]

Does he supply other leagues (minors, college, high schools) as well?

What did he do before he was the sole supplier of rosin for MLB?

He may not want to share this, but what's his revenue from MLB?

 

[Tangled Up In Red]

Bump if anyone else is interested or has questions...

 

[CarolinaBeerGuy]

No questions, but I’m definitely interested in your follow up. Have fun today!

 

[Bowhemian]

Since he is the sole supplier for the rosin bags, what is MLB's contingency plan? Does someone else have the "recipe" that make his rosin bags better than others? And what makes them better?

 

[Tangled Up In Red]

Visit was super cool. Just behind Chase Center (where the Warriors are playing the Kings rn), on the Bay about 1/4 mile south of the Ballpark. Old, industrial pier building (shared).
Truly is a one-person operation. When I got there, he was pouring ~100 bat sticks and another few hundred were cooling and setting.
Next week is a rosin bag cycle - I volunteered my help... But I got to see the empty bags and the raw materials. Turns out, the recipe isn't really a 'secret', it is MLB known and approved (for his manufacture only). Very manual process, but very pure.
He was among a handful of groups who effectively (formally or not) responded and competed on an MLB RFP -- and he won! He's been at it a few seasons now.

No pics were allowed, but I hope to be back again soon (next week?).