Thursday, October 2, 2014

Speeding Up The Game

When it comes to wathcing baseball, there is probably one complaint that we hear more than any other, and that is, "the game takes too long." Well, Major League Baseball is now putting an effort towards fixing this complaint.

The 'Pace of Game Committee,' which consists of MLB, Major League Baseball Players Association, and team executives, have come up with a total of six tweaks to the game that on paper, should speed it up. These tweaks will be tested out during the upcoming Arizona Fall League, which runs from October 7th to November 15th.

The changes that will be tested are:
  1. The batter must keep one foot inside the batter's box at all times - except during foul balls, wild pitches, and when the umpire grants the batter 'time-out.'
  2. Pitchers must throw each pitch within 20 seconds of recieving the ball - there will be clocks that count down from 20 in each dugout.
  3. The maximum break for inbetween innings will be 2:05 - the batter must be in the box by 1:45, and if the hitter is not ready, he will be penalized a strike. If the pitcher does not throw a pitch before the 2:05 expires, he will be penalized a ball.
  4. Teams wil be allowed a maximum of 2:30 to change pitchers - the clock for this will begin as soon as the new pitcher enters from the bullpen.
  5. Teams will be allowed a maximum of three mound visits a game - this does not include pitching changes, it applies to catcher, manager, and coach visits.
  6. Four balls no are no longer needed to be thrown for an intentional walk - the manager will just tell the umpire, and the batter will then go to first base.
Some of these changes will be very tough to enforce. Sticking to a strict clock will be a tough thing for baseball to do, and batters will need to get used to staying inside the batter's box at most times. Just becuase these changes have been proposed and are going to be tested does not mean that they will be applied to the MLB anytime soon, but it is a good start to begin to address the problem that baseball is undoubtley facing.


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5 comments:

  1. old guyOctober 3, 2014 at 2:51 PM

    I remember when my sons were young and played "tournament ball" several of these ideas were used to get the games finished on time. The parents liked them ,not sure about the kids.

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  2. UnknownOctober 5, 2014 at 7:11 PM

    The one new rule I was looking at that you mentioned is the 20 seconds the pitcher has to throw the next pitch. I like the rule, but what if they don't throw the pitch in the time span they are given? Is it considered a ball? Or is it a balk if someone is on base? What do you think the "punishment" will be if it is not thrown in the time span?

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  3. Cburke315October 9, 2014 at 6:45 AM

    I don't really see how they can try and change the rules to speed up the game and why they would want to. Real fans live for the games that prolong and that are filled with emotion. That is what makes baseball so great, is that each game is different and you don't know what will happen.

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  4. UnknownOctober 12, 2014 at 6:58 PM

    I think speeding up the game of baseball is a great idea. I like it, and I think speeding up the game will get more people to watch baseball. I grew up playing baseball and I loved it, but it was tough for me to watch baseball on tv because of the speed of the game.

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  5. UnknownOctober 12, 2014 at 6:59 PM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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