http://msn.foxsports.com/id/6089062_7_2.jpg

http://msn.foxsports.com/id/6089496_36_2.jpg

The stain on the back of the cap in the first picture is evident.

I suppose somebody with TIVO and lots of time on their hands is going through the FOX broadcast frame-by-frame, counting the number of times Rogers touches the bill of his cap? Can we get access to the FOX camera that was presumably focused on Rogers whenever he was on the mound?

C'mon, folks, just because the umpires, MLB, and Tony LaRussa apparently don't care about this, doesn't mean the blogosphere can't uncover this massive plot!

SleepCA: The Spot on the back of his cap is explained by the fact that he had something on his hand. You see, he uses his hand to put on and also to take off his cap.

It's weird that the stories don't line up. But there's nothing to this. Let it go.

I agree...there really is nothing to this story...he's just pitching great this post-season (maybe he figures this could be a last hurrah for post-seaon play, he's more motivated, etc., than his other post-season series, and even that the team that is backing him up is fielding very well.) Also, Rogers wearing the different cap could just be about wool vs polyester, not some brim-color conspiracy!

I can't understand why people are so willing to give this guy a pass. Does Kenny Rogers have some great history as a model citizen that I'm unaware of? For those who think there's nothing to this, I have a few questions:

Why did Rogers lie after the game, saying the ump did not tell him to wash his hand?

If the ump saw dirt, why was Rogers told to wash his hand? If he was simply trying to avoid controversy, did he think nobody would think it strange that he talked, on field, to both managers and the pitcher between the top of the 2nd and the top of the 3rd?

Does it really look like dirt to you? Have you ever seen pine tar?

1. Actually, black shows any foreign substance not also pure black better than grey.

2. My take: Rogers is probably not doctoring the ball. His overall somewhat better pitching is either due to better pitching or something like hgh, rather than using a foreign substance.

3. Pine tar can be used to doctor the ball, but also to create a better grip in cold weather. Both are against the rules, but the latter is widespread, and one of those rules violations that don't bother the practicioners, which is why nobody who played the game last night has shown any interest in this fuss.

4. The recent performance that needs to be explained is Weaver's more than Rogers.

Rogers is getting a pass because nobody can prove what was on his hand...though I agree that it looked like pine tar. Further, if you want to blame somebody for not doing something during the game, blame LaRussa. Earlier today on ESPN, someone (it was early in the morning, my memory's fuzzy) was talking about how LaRussa and Leyland are friends, and then said that Tony "just didn't want to make a big deal out of this." Remember what happened with Robinson and Mike Scioscia? Apparently managers get angry when another manager catches their guy cheating...

Umm...Tony? It's the World Series. You should have thrown a fit and insisted the umps check his hand and eject him if necessary...not ask them nicely to have Kenny go to the bathroom. If nothing else, a bit of gamesmanship might have rattled the guy.

Further, to the conspiracy theorists...what does MLB have to gain from protecting him? Most of the country knows Kenny Rogers as the dude who hit a cameraman...it probably would have been good for ratings to see him go down in flames as a cheater. Would have shown that Baseball is serious about cleaning up the game, or something like that...Hell, it's not like viewers are tuning in in record numbers for this Series. Baseball would have probably been better off if the umps had tossed the guy. Instead, they've gotten more bad press and for the second year in a row, the playoffs are marred by controversy. No, I don't think there's anything sinister going on here...

Oh, and it could also very well be that Capybara got it right, and that most pitchers use pine tar in cold weather. Who knows, the Cards may have been doing the same thing. If it's as common as I've heard it is, statistically speaking, at least one of the Cards' pitchers last night was.

Anybody who says it's easier to hide dirt with a black background hasn't owned a black car before.

Has anyone ever thought that it's just a more comfortable cap? I know I love the BP caps far more than the 5950. It breathes better than wool, and doesn't shrink over the duration of a season. I can't imagine wearing one every day. My sweaty head would have it looking like Trot Nixon's within a week.

What would you rather get dirt on - a gray shirt or a black shirt? Which would your mother be more likely to notice? Obviously the black one.

This has nothing to do with cars. They are shiny, the cloth of a hat isn't. Not to mention the dirt you often see on cars is not black or brown, it's grayish/white salt, and light gray dried dirt and sand.

Salt? Heh heh... speak for yourself. No need to salt the roads out here. It was 93 degrees and sunny today in L.A.

A gray shirt.