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 brethren have played games altered by baseball’s most drastic rule changes since the advent of the designated hitter in 1972: There were restrictions on the infield shift, larger bases to promote the running game, and, most notably, a pitch clock with a 15-second timer when the bases were empty and a 20-second timer when the bases were occupied. “It’s going to be different,” Morgan Sword, MLB’s executive vice president for baseball operations, told The Athletic. “If the moment’s right, the playoff noise, until you really hear it, I don’t think you can appreciate how loud it can get,” said Cincinnati Reds catcher Luke Maile, who appeared in postseason games in 2021 and 2022. “If you’ve got to use it, use it,” said Texas Rangers manager Bruce Bochy, who won three championships with San Francisco in the 2010s.

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History of this topic

MLB’s made a lot of rule changes over the past few years. The most noticeable? A pitch clock
6 months ago

MLB’s made a lot of rule changes over the past few years. The most noticeable? A pitch clock

Associated Press  

PHOENIX — Major League Baseball’s rule-change bonanza of 2023 altered a myriad of the game’s details, including cutting back extreme infield shifts, bigger bases and limits on how many times a pitcher can disengage from the rubber. “I mean, just looking at kind of the rule changes the past couple years, I think pace of play probably has affected things …

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

Players’ union head blames quicker pitch clock after series of pitcher elbow injuries
11 months, 2 weeks ago

Players’ union head blames quicker pitch clock after series of pitcher elbow injuries

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — The head of the baseball players’ association thinks a shorter pitch clock has contributed to a series of pitcher injuries. “Despite unanimous player opposition and significant concerns regarding health and safety, the commissioner’s office reduced the length of the pitch clock last December, just one season removed from imposing the most significant rule change in decades,” union …

MLB fires back after MLBPA calls pitch clock a ‘threat’ as pitching injuries mount
11 months, 2 weeks ago

MLB fires back after MLBPA calls pitch clock a ‘threat’ as pitching injuries mount

New York Times  

Amid Cleveland Guardians starter Shane Bieber and Atlanta Braves right-hander Spencer Strider suffering elbow injuries, the Major League Baseball Players Association expressed concern over the effects of MLB’s rules changes, citing the pitch clock that went into use during the 2023 season. “Despite unanimous player opposition and significant concerns regarding health and safety, the commissioner’s office reduced the length of …

Opinion: Baseball is timeless and sacred. MLB’s efforts to make it like other sports are not
1 year ago

Opinion: Baseball is timeless and sacred. MLB’s efforts to make it like other sports are not

LA Times  

I’m trying to explain the difference between sacred and profane time to my class on world religions, and baseball exemplifies the sacred variety. Now that the baseball season is upon us, and I’ve been listening to Cactus League games on the car radio as I drive around Los Angeles, I’m transported into a different feeling of time, a different experience …

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 …

Rob Manfred says MLB will discuss postseason format, but commissioner likes it
1 year, 4 months ago

Rob Manfred says MLB will discuss postseason format, but commissioner likes it

New York Times  

ARLINGTON, Texas — Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said Friday that although he likes the current design of the playoffs, the league has heard enough complaints and chatter around the format — and whether it does enough to acknowledge regular-season success — that his office will discuss it. “That’s kind of how baseball playoffs are, and frankly, how I …

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 …

MLB to tweak pitch-clock process — but not the rules — during the playoffs
1 year, 5 months ago

MLB to tweak pitch-clock process — but not the rules — during the playoffs

New York Times  

The pitch clock is not going away in the postseason, that much we know. “The fastest.” It turned out they were probably right, as Philadelphia’s clock produced the most violations per game in the sport to that point. Park Away Violations Home Violations Difference T-Mobile Park 0.32 0.09 0.23 Tropicana Field 0.14 0.32 -0.19 Citi Field 0.23 0.40 -0.17 Dodger …

MLB players think pitch clock should change in playoffs, but say new rules good for game
1 year, 9 months ago

MLB players think pitch clock should change in playoffs, but say new rules good for game

New York Times  

Check out the 2023 MLB Player Poll with honest opinions of the new rules, Shohei Ohtani and more. The Athletic polled more than a hundred MLB Players to get their opinion of the new rules: Banning the shift, bigger bases and the pitch clock. “If you’re in the eighth inning of a World Series game, and somebody gets banged on …

MLB seeks ‘best form of baseball’ by picking up the pace
1 year, 11 months ago

MLB seeks ‘best form of baseball’ by picking up the pace

Al Jazeera  

Major League Baseball is using a pitch clock this season, one of a few new rules that experts say are changing the game. “Overall, I think speeding up the game and creating more action are good things.” New on-field rules are coming in 2023, and we have answers for your questions: https://t.co/Zk1KFZMumG pic.twitter.com/hFyrkagA34 — MLB February 7, 2023 The changes …

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 …

Top 10 MLB pitch-clock violations of the 2023 season (so far)
1 year, 11 months ago

Top 10 MLB pitch-clock violations of the 2023 season (so far)

New York Times  

Once upon a time in baseball, we all knew the umpires and their options in life. Carlos Carrasco receives a pitch clock violation before he throws his first pitch of the season pic.twitter.com/jfZFuYb38N — SNY April 3, 2023 8. Mark Canha strikes out on a pitch clock violation pic.twitter.com/4ztfZYAM6E — SNY April 3, 2023 4. More great moments in Strikeouts …

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 …

‘We’ve just got to figure it out.’ Dodgers, Angels brace for pitch clock implications
1 year, 11 months ago

‘We’ve just got to figure it out.’ Dodgers, Angels brace for pitch clock implications

LA Times  

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts looks on as the pitch clock expires during an exhibition against the Angels on Monday night at Angel Stadium. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts did not hesitate this week when asked how he liked baseball’s new pitch clock, which requires pitchers to start their delivery within 15 seconds of receiving the ball with the bases empty and …

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, …

Conley’s pitch clock violation leaves Braves-Red Sox tied
2 years, 1 month ago

Conley’s pitch clock violation leaves Braves-Red Sox tied

Associated Press  

Cal Conley of the Atlanta Braves thought he had just won the game with a two-out, full-count, bases-loaded walk-off walk on Saturday. It was a far more dramatic moment than when San Diego Padres slugger Manny Machado on Friday became the first player to draw a pitch clock violation when he was called for an automatic strike in the bottom …

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 …

Opinion: A clock saved the NBA. Can it now save baseball?
2 years, 1 month ago

Opinion: A clock saved the NBA. Can it now save baseball?

CNN  

Editor’s Note: Frederic J. Frommer, a writer and sports historian, is the author of several books, including “You Gotta Have Heart,” a history of Washington baseball. CNN — In recent years, there has been a lot of standing around in baseball games, with pitchers taking forever to throw the ball and hitters frequently stepping out of the batter’s box. And …

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 …

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 …

What MLB players and managers are saying about the rule changes for 2023
2 years, 6 months ago

What MLB players and managers are saying about the rule changes for 2023

New York Times  

Major League Baseball’s competition committee approved a slate of rule changes that will go into effect for the 2023 season. “The other sports have made a lot of changes in recent years and have made adjustments, and it’s nice to see our guys, the league and the players and the umpires, come together and try to better the game for …

MLB adopts pitch clock, shift limits, bigger bases for 2023
2 years, 6 months ago

MLB adopts pitch clock, shift limits, bigger bases for 2023

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Major League Baseball is introducing some of its most radical rules next season, adopting a pitch clock and limiting defensive shifts after concluding modern analytics created a slower, less entertaining sport. “It reminded me of the game that I grew up watching in the ’70s and ’80,” said former outfielder Raúl Ibañez, now an MLB senior vice …

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 …

Pitch clocks, shift limits, larger bases in MLB's future
2 years, 8 months ago

Pitch clocks, shift limits, larger bases in MLB's future

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “We’ve known it’s been an issue and its importance …

Why it takes so long for MLB to change rules: Battle between tradition and innovation
2 years, 10 months ago

Why it takes so long for MLB to change rules: Battle between tradition and innovation

LA Times  

Umpire Mike Muchlinski, center, speaks with Seattle Mariners manager Scott Servais, left, and Tampa Bay Rays third base coach Rodney Linares before a game on May 5. The Dodgers pitcher, standing in front of his locker on a spring afternoon, says: “I’ll keep it real short and simple.” Trash is the word he uses for the universal designated hitter and …

MLB pushes labor-deal deadline to Tuesday for March 31 start
3 years ago

MLB pushes labor-deal deadline to Tuesday for March 31 start

Associated Press  

JUPITER, Fla. — Major League Baseball extended its deadline for salvaging opening day and a 162-game season until Tuesday at 5 p.m. after a marathon of 13 bargaining sessions over 16 1/2 hours produced progress toward a deal but left the sides still far apart. The union said it didn’t necessarily agree to the timeframe and just as the sides …

Rosenthal: The pressure is mounting — MLB cannot afford to lose games this season
3 years, 2 months ago

Rosenthal: The pressure is mounting — MLB cannot afford to lose games this season

New York Times  

Not a single game should be lost. Commissioner Rob Manfred initiated the lockout, then was rightly pilloried for calling it “defensive” and saying it was intended to “jumpstart” the negotiations, when in reality 43 days would pass before the league presented the union with an offer on core economic issues. It is doubtful Manfred will ever reach agreement with the …

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, players agree to restart baseball season with scheduling and rules tweaks.
55 years, 2 months ago

MLB, players agree to restart baseball season with scheduling and rules tweaks.

Slate  

After an acrimonious several months of negotiations, Major League Baseball and the players’ union agreed Tuesday to a restart of what will be an abridged version of the 2020 season. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred announced this season will be a 60-game sprint, roughly a third of the normal 162-game schedule, beginning in one month’s time. Spring training, which was abruptly …

MLB blasts ‘unwritten rules’ in official postseason ad
6 years, 5 months ago

MLB blasts ‘unwritten rules’ in official postseason ad

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Major League Baseball is opening October by blasting the game’s so-called “unwritten rules.” MLB released an “Don’t stop and stare. Acuna was plunked by Miami’s Jose Urena during his impressive five-game homer streak this season, an incident that put baseball’s unwritten rules back under the microscope. “Let the kids play.” The commercial features soundbites from a few …

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