Benadryl Blues: Alex Verdugo’s unfortunate allergy blamed for struggles

New York Yankees outfielder Alex Verdugo has faced some serious struggles this season. In fact, he has slowly trended downward over the last four seasons.

In 2020, the shortened season, Verdugo slashed .308/.367/.478 and received MVP votes. The next season he would slash .289/.351/.426, just a step or two behind his impressive 2020 year. He would see his OPS drop again in 2022 and 2023.

2024 has been the worst year of his career. Verdugo is slashing .237/.297/.368 on the season, all well below his career averages. He has more protection in the lineup and he has more experience, so what's the problem?

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Yankees outfielder Alex Verdugo reveals newfound allergy: batting gloves and tattoos

Verdugo has dealt with hand and skin soreness, blisters and pain over the last three or four years.

“My hands hurt,” Verdugo told NJ Advance Media recently. “They blister. Then it opens and starts scabbing. It’s like super dry skin. I’ve been dealing with this since they started barking in ‘21.”

After seeing the Yankees medical staff over the All-Star break, he was sent to see an allergy specialist to get to the bottom of this whole thing.

The results came back and the doctors had some seriously head scratching news to break to the Yankees outfielder. He was allergic to his batting gloves and potentially the metal ink that was used in his tattoos.

Yeah, seriously.

This kind of allergy, if it is just the batting gloves, could be very simple to solve. Just don't use gloves that are contaminated with cobalt and chromate, the two chemicals that are sparking the reaction from the outfielder.

But if it's the tattoos as well, they could have a more complex problem on their hands.

Turns out, top Yankees prospect Jasson Dominguez has seen similar hand issues with the soreness and the blistering to that out Verdugo. Dominguez could have the opportunity to see doctors as well, potentially getting well ahead of the issue, unlike Verdugo.

If this is the case and Verdugo can get the soreness and blisters to go away, he could see a complete career turnaround following the healing of his hands.

The hands are an integral part of the baseball player. Verdugo's have been compromised for years and now he could see this completely cleared up in the near future.