Loving the Rule Changes

Unlike the last time MLB made multiple major rule changes at once (the beyond-stupid seven-inning doubleheaders and even dumber free runner in extra innings), I'm totally on board with the ones that were announced on Friday and will be implemented next season.  In fact, I'm beyond on board with them.  I'm excited about them!  It's stuff I've been wanting to see for quite a while now!

Let's start with the most obvious, and the one that will have the biggest and most obvious immediate impact.  Much to the delight of left-handed hitters everywhere, the shift will be BANNED!  No more positioning your second baseman in short right field or playing with four outfielders.  Instead, you'll have to play a traditional defense.  Two infielders on the left side, two on the right, and all four of them with their feet on the dirt.

The shift has become more and more prominent in recent years, and it has become the bane of left-handed hitters' existence.  It's a result of this new analytics-driven age that has taken over the game.  But, as batting averages around the Majors continued to go down year after year, it was pretty clear it was a result of the shift and something had to be done about it.

Critics of the rule change, of course, argue that left-handed hitters should "learn to hit the other way," as if it's that easy to just completely change their swing!  Those critics are the minority, however.  And they don't see the larger picture. 

Most fans absolutely hate the shift!  Balls that should be seeing-eye singles (and were until about five years ago) are suddenly turning into groundouts because the second baseman is standing in right field.  Teams are turning 6-5-3 double plays because their third baseman is the only infielder on the left side, so he has to play in the shortstop position.  Teams are playing with only three infielders so they can turn it into slow-pitch softball and have four outfielders.  Or, perhaps the most annoying positioning of all, infielders move around between pitches! so that they're best positioned for where the ball is most likely to be hit!

So, yeah, it's not as simple as "lefties should just bunt or learn how to hit the other way."  Is it a surprise, then, that lefties instead turned to trying to hit the ball out of the ballpark rather than on the ground, resulting in more strikeouts?

Beyond that, from a fan perspective, it's so unappealing to watch.  Fewer hits means fewer baserunners means less action.  And it's just as frustrating to see a ball that should be a hit instead turn into a 130-foot groundout to short right field because of that stupid hourglass defense!  It was annoying enough when it was just the Rays.  Then everybody started doing it and it got out of control!  So, yes, something had to be done!

Now let's talk about the pitch clock, which is being introduced entirely as a means to shorten games.  This also seemed inevitable after having the desired effect in the Minors.  Since they started using the pitch clock, Minor League games have clocked in right around two and a half hours.  Major League games usually hover around three, with a lot of dead time in between, which, if you ask me is more the problem than the actual length of the games.

For some pitchers, the pitch clock won't be a problem.  They get the ball and they're ready to go.  There are others who take painfully long!  They used to call Steve Trachsel the "Human Rain Delay" because it took him so long between pitches, and, I didn't realize this until I saw him pitch live this season, but Shohei Ohtani takes FOREVER!  Even with nobody on base!  I continually found myself screaming "Pitch the ball!" at him.

Next season, they'll only have 15 seconds with no one on base and 20 if there are runners on.  That, frankly, is plenty of time, especially now that teams have the ability to use PitchComm (which often leaves the pitcher standing there ready to go and waiting for the batter).  The clock will impact the hitter, too.  They have to be in the box with eight seconds left or else it's an automatic strike (it's an automatic ball if the pitcher goes over).

My favorite part of the pitch clock, though, has nothing to do with the pitch clock itself.  It has to do with the fact that pitchers can't continually throw over to first for no reason other than to stall.  That, frankly, is as painful to watch as the defensive shifts.  (I've had plenty of games where I was umpiring when a team used pickoff attempts simply to run out the clock in a time-limited game.)

They can still throw over.  The pickoff is still a part of the game, and no one was suggesting it be taken out.  They're just saying it can't be used as a stall tactic anymore.  You get two free ones.  If you throw over a third time and you don't get him, it's a balk.  So, there's definitely a risk/reward element to it.  They're also limiting the number of times the pitcher can step off per plate appearance.  Again, simply to prevent it from being used as a stall tactic.

One of the things they hope will come back as a result of these changes is the stolen base.  Back in the 80s, the stolen base was a huge weapon.  In the modern, analytics-based game, it's practically nonexistent.  The MLB leader is the Marlins' Jon Berti, who has a whopping 32!  The team with the most stolen bases?  The Rangers, with 113 (which is an average of 0.8 per game).
 
Another reason the number of stolen bases might go up is because the size of the bases will be increasing from 15" to 18".  While that doesn't sound like a lot, it means second base is three inches closer.  And that three inches can make a huge difference, especially on bang-bang plays that require multiple replays to see whether the runner was safe or not.  The argument behind the bigger bases is that they'll improve player safety, but I think the impact on stolen bases is just as significant.

While these are the only three changes that were voted on and approved on Friday, there may be others.  The new Competition Committee, a group of players, team executives and an umpire representative that was created as a result of the new CBA, will continue to meet and may suggest some smaller changes.  There's also no word on whether they'll keep the extra innings free runner for a fourth consecutive season (or permanently), but I think you all already know my thoughts on that.

Even if they don't suggest any other changes, though, these three alone will likely result in a much-improved product in 2023.  And that was the ultimate goal.  Making the game more watchable.  Getting rid of the infield shift and implementing a pitch clock should achieve just that.