No pitch clock, shift limits for World Baseball Classic
2 years, 1 month ago

No pitch clock, shift limits for World Baseball Classic

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Major League Baseball’s new pitch clock, limits on shifts and larger bases will not be used during the World Baseball Classic. “There’s going to be an adjustment and learning curve to those, so for the actual quality of baseball in the WBC, it’s probably better that they didn’t spring that on us in important games,” St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt said Tuesday during an online availability. We’re going to need a learning curve with those and we won’t get it for a few weeks, but we’ll work on it in spring training and other times.” This will be the fifth edition of the WBC following victories by Japan in 2006 and ’09, the Dominican Republic in 2013 and the U.S. in 2017. I don’t know if it will get quite there, but get it close at least.” Arenado agreed with the decision to not have the new rules in this year’s tournament.

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History of this topic

Faster-paced MLB games being embraced by fans and players, no longer ‘too much of a time commitment’
5 months, 3 weeks ago

Faster-paced MLB games being embraced by fans and players, no longer ‘too much of a time commitment’

Associated Press  

CHICAGO — On a cloudy, breezy day in September, Tate Conrad and his son, Miles, settled into their seats behind the home dugout at Wrigley Field. While many longtime fans are indifferent when it comes to their time at a ballpark — “I’m out here to enjoy the game and if it takes a little longer it takes a little …

MLB is widening the runner’s lane to first, changing a rule that has caused World Series controversy
1 year, 3 months ago

MLB is widening the runner’s lane to first, changing a rule that has caused World Series controversy

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Major League Baseball is widening the runner’s lane approaching first base to include a portion of fair territory, changing a more than century-old rule that caused World Series controversy over interference calls. Another change adopted Thursday by the sport’s 11-man competition committee requires a pitcher who warms up on the mound before a half inning to face …

Shorter pitch clock, new runner’s lane among MLB’s rule changes for 2024
1 year, 3 months ago

Shorter pitch clock, new runner’s lane among MLB’s rule changes for 2024

New York Times  

A tighter, 18-second pitch clock with runners on base … a new, wider runner’s lane between home and first base … one fewer mound visit. Fewer mound visits: The number of mound visits will shrink from five per team, per game to four, although teams that have used their allotment will get one extra visit in the ninth inning, as …

Whole new ballgame: MLB’s new rules changed everything
1 year, 4 months ago

Whole new ballgame: MLB’s new rules changed everything

New York Times  

You know your sport has issues when even its own Hall of Famers say they can barely watch it. Those pitchers can’t make 12 pickoff throws to first base anymore — and we just finished a season with more stolen bases per game than any year since 1997. It has brought us back much of what we love most about …

MLB proposes trimming pitch clock with runners on base, AP source says
1 year, 4 months ago

MLB proposes trimming pitch clock with runners on base, AP source says

Associated Press  

Major League Baseball has proposed cutting the pitch clock from 20 seconds to 18 seconds with runners on base, according to a person with direct knowledge of the proposal. With the pitch clock, the average time of nine-inning games dropped to 2 hours, 40 minutes during the regular season, the lowest since 1985. “I’m thinking about ’24 as kind of …

MLB likely to implement 18-second pitch clock with runners on base in 2024: Sources
1 year, 4 months ago

MLB likely to implement 18-second pitch clock with runners on base in 2024: Sources

New York Times  

Major League Baseball will likely reduce the pitch clock to 18 seconds from 20 with runners on base next year, major-league sources confirmed Wednesday. In 2023, the first season of the pitch clock, MLB reduced the average time of a nine-inning game by 24 minutes, down from 3 hours, 4 minutes. One is that game times grew gradually longer as …

MLB game time drops 24 minutes to 2:40 with pitch clock. Players steal most bases since 1987
1 year, 5 months ago

MLB game time drops 24 minutes to 2:40 with pitch clock. Players steal most bases since 1987

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — The average time of a nine-inning major league game dropped to 2 hours, 40 minutes in the first year of the pitch clock, a 24-minute decrease in a season of change that resulted in a spike in batting average and the most stolen bases in nearly 40 years. Left-handed hitters benefitted from the new restrictions on defensive …

The pitch clock meets the postseason: MLB’s new rules face October pressure
1 year, 5 months ago

The pitch clock meets the postseason: MLB’s new rules face October pressure

New York Times  

Craig Kimbrel added a new wrinkle to his postseason preparation last week. “I made a point in my last outing to try to speed my tempo up a little bit,” Kimbrel said this past weekend, adding, “I’m going to try to nip that in the bud, before it becomes a problem.” For the past six months, Kimbrel and his big-league …

MLB Player Poll 2023: Their thoughts on new rules, expansion teams and Shohei Ohtani
1 year, 9 months ago

MLB Player Poll 2023: Their thoughts on new rules, expansion teams and Shohei Ohtani

New York Times  

We’re big fans of player polls at The Athletic. An AL player we spoke to had it all gamed out: “The Mets and Padres will get in a bidding war and the Dodgers will swoop in.” And while multiple players were quick to make their own case — “Hopefully the one I’m on” and “I hope here, or somewhere I’m …

MLB batting average up 16 points, game time down 31 minutes
1 year, 11 months ago

MLB batting average up 16 points, game time down 31 minutes

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Major League Baseball’s new rules designed to speed pace of play and encourage more action seem to be working through the first 1 1/2 weeks of the season. Batting average is up 16 points, stolen bases have spiked 30% and the average game time is down 31 minutes, on track to be the sport’s lowest since 1984. …

MLB pitch clock proving to be a mental and physical game-changer
1 year, 11 months ago

MLB pitch clock proving to be a mental and physical game-changer

LA Times  

It was the third inning Saturday and Clayton Kershaw needed a moment to collect himself. The game’s fast and you need to be thinking ahead about this pitch and that pitch.” Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw delivers against the Angels on March 26. “If you’re in a good groove, you don’t really notice it, but I think there are going to …

Falling in love with the MLB pitch clock is easy. Embrace it
1 year, 11 months ago

Falling in love with the MLB pitch clock is easy. Embrace it

LA Times  

Two minutes, one out! ‘We’ve just got to figure it out.’ MLB teams brace for pitch clock implications Major League Baseball’s new pitch clock rules will go into effect for real Thursday when the regular season begins. “It’s the first time I’ve gotten to my Westside home after a night game before 11,” he said. It’s the best change in …

Opinion: Baseball’s new pitch clock is the best thing since sliced bread
2 years ago

Opinion: Baseball’s new pitch clock is the best thing since sliced bread

LA Times  

I am a conservative. I was leery not because of the team — no, the Redbirds are in fine shape, and I implore you to learn the name Jordan Walker — but, rather, because of the game’s new rules under which the Cardinals and their Major League brethren will labor this season. Dodgers Dodgers give pitch clock, other new rules …

How a new MLB rule could change baseball games this season
2 years ago

How a new MLB rule could change baseball games this season

NPR  

How a new MLB rule could change baseball games this season Enlarge this image toggle caption Morry Gash/AP Morry Gash/AP There are a few key rule changes coming to Major League Baseball this season, but one in particular already is throwing players for a curve. Sponsor Message MLB officials say the pitch clock can help reduce the length of games, …

Dodgers give pitch clock, other new rules rave reviews after spring opener
2 years, 1 month ago

Dodgers give pitch clock, other new rules rave reviews after spring opener

LA Times  

Home plate umpire Jim Wolf tells Dodgers batter David Peralta to take first base after a pitching clock violation during the second inning of the Dodgers’ spring training opener Saturday against the Milwaukee Brewers. During their first spring training game Saturday, in a full count with David Peralta at bat in the second inning, the Dodgers encountered one of Major …

On the clock: New timer will affect more than just pitchers
2 years, 1 month ago

On the clock: New timer will affect more than just pitchers

Associated Press  

SARASOTA, Fla. — As one of the game’s top prospects, Grayson Rodriguez will probably make his debut for the Baltimore Orioles pretty soon, and then the 23-year-old right-hander can begin adjusting to the big leagues. That drives me crazy, so this pitch clock kind of expediting the process, I like it a lot.” Not everyone is as sanguine about the …

Major league teams searching for advantages with new rules
2 years, 1 month ago

Major league teams searching for advantages with new rules

Associated Press  

PHOENIX — It’s a brand new day in the major leagues — potentially an even brighter one for base-stealers like Trea Turner and Ronald Acuña Jr., and most definitely a change of pace for veteran aces like Gerrit Cole or Yu Darvish. “I think the one thing we know about our industry is to the extent there’s an advantage to …

How four rule changes will impact Major League Baseball in 2023
2 years, 3 months ago

How four rule changes will impact Major League Baseball in 2023

LA Times  

The pitch clock MLB will institute in 2023 will differ in a few key areas from the one that was deployed in the minor leagues. But if last season’s implementation across the minor leagues is any indication, the pitch clock should fulfill the league’s mission to quicken games without much of a problem. “The pitch clock is something that I …

How MLB’s new rules are shaping the 2022-23 offseason and changing the art of team building
2 years, 3 months ago

How MLB’s new rules are shaping the 2022-23 offseason and changing the art of team building

New York Times  

Carlos Santana hit.061 on pulled groundballs to the right side last season. We’re not going back to four-dots-on-the-infield kind of baseball.” FREE AGENTS IT MIGHT HELP: You might think this change is right in the wheelhouse of swing-and-miss pitchers everywhere — except they didn’t need any help! “If we’re talking about the impact on the game as entertainment,” said one …

Pitch clock cut minor league games by 25 minutes to 2:38
2 years, 5 months ago

Pitch clock cut minor league games by 25 minutes to 2:38

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Use of pitch clocks cut the average time of minor league games by 25 minutes this year, a reduction Major League Baseball hopes is replicated when the devices are installed in the big leagues next season. The average time of minor league games dropped to 2 hours, 38 minutes in the season that ended Wednesday, according to …

MLB’s new rules: How pitch clock, shift ban and bigger bases will — and won’t — change the game
2 years, 6 months ago

MLB’s new rules: How pitch clock, shift ban and bigger bases will — and won’t — change the game

New York Times  

There’s a thing I’ve noticed about sports: When you change the rules, stuff happens. As one exec I surveyed put it, “the cost of an out in the big leagues is still going to be valued.” But also remember these rules aren’t just there to subtly encourage base stealing. So they may be OK with two-man outfields.” — one club …

Dodgers players have mixed opinions about 2023 MLB rule changes
2 years, 6 months ago

Dodgers players have mixed opinions about 2023 MLB rule changes

LA Times  

Max Muncy hits a three-run home run against the San Francisco Giants on Sept. 7. More than a year removed from one of the most unusual doubles of his career, when Machado nearly robbed him of extra bases on an extreme defensive shift during a game at Petco Park last June, Muncy vividly recalled the play on Friday, reliving the …

MLB, players keep automatic runners in extras for 2022
2 years, 11 months ago

MLB, players keep automatic runners in extras for 2022

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Major League Baseball finalized the rules change Thursday to bring back automatic runners in extra innings for a third straight season. Despite an easing of pandemic restrictions, MLB and the players’ association agreed to keep the controversial rule that starts each team with a runner on second base during extra innings for the 2022 regular season. The …

MLB’s extra-inning rule is a hit with some, a whiff with others
3 years, 9 months ago

MLB’s extra-inning rule is a hit with some, a whiff with others

LA Times  

The Milwaukee Brewers celebrate after beating the Dodgers in 11 innings on May 1 in Milwaukee. The league considered several ideas before choosing “the minor league rule,” including ending games in a push to make the next day’s game worth two wins, having a statistic serve as the tiebreaker after the ninth inning, taking one fielder off the field each …

MLB will not keep universal designated hitters under approved 2021 protocols
4 years, 1 month ago

MLB will not keep universal designated hitters under approved 2021 protocols

LA Times  

The 2021 MLB season will again feature seven-inning doubleheaders and runners on second base to start extra innings. Seven-inning doubleheaders and runners on second base to start extra innings will return for a second straight season under an agreement for 2021 health protocols reached Monday between Major League Baseball and the players’ association. The deal did not include last year’s …

New MLB rules are designed to speed up and shorten games
4 years, 8 months ago

New MLB rules are designed to speed up and shorten games

LA Times  

Baseball will have a different look and feel once the coronavirus-shortened 2020 MLB season gets underway. Before the COVID-19 pandemic caused the suspension of spring training, Major League Baseball announced rule changes intended to speed up the pace of play. The rule stands to benefit the high-powered Angels lineup, which not only boasts reigning MVP Mike Trout but also features …

MLB announces rules changes for 2020 season
5 years, 1 month ago

MLB announces rules changes for 2020 season

LA Times  

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts will now have 20 seconds to decided if he will challenge a play. Major League Baseball announced rules changes Wednesday for the 2020 season, including a three-batter minimum for relief pitchers and active roster limits increasing from 25-26 through Aug. 31. Other pitching changes include clubs carrying a maximum of 13 pitchers during the regular season …

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