SI
The other major rule changes also are having their desired effect. The bigger bases, coupled with a limit on pickoffs, prompted a 44% increase in stolen base attempts in spring training and an improvement in success rate from 71% to 77%.
In the first 11 games Thursday, teams stole 21 bases in 23 tries—that’s the equivalent of 1980s-style running.
The ban on shifts increased the batting average on pulled ground balls in spring training from .183 to .206. Sounds small, but that’s more than 2,000 hits coming back to the game. The overall batting average on balls in play jumped from .311 last spring to .317 this spring, the highest since at least 2016.
Nothing, though, is impacting baseball more than the pitch timer. Baseball excised the worst thing about baseball—all the unnecessary dawdling and dead time—and took it out in one fell swoop. Replays happen faster (managers have less time to contemplate a challenge). There is less killing time to get relievers ready. Fewer Velcro rituals. More
More specifics on the rules changes. Here
The games are shorter by nearly 40 minutes. It won’t be long before the concessionaires are complaining that they can’t make any money in such a short time. They’ll have no choice but to raise prices. Which stadium will have the first $20.00 beer?
Golf could use a timeclock with some of these guys that take forever to end up missing the damn 4-foot putt anyway.
Instead, Golf Inc. is about to fuck up by changing the ball.
They already divided into competing groups.
The Masters will be very interesting later this week.
Can’t wait!
Still not interested.
joe6, likely already at 20 bucks in NY, especially if you want a freaky faggot on your Bud Light can…
Back in the 1980’s I was at a Mariners game that was 1 hour 49 minutes. Even for then that was short. The score was 1-0.
I always liked a longer game when we went in person.
Eat & drink and chill during a nice afternoon.
It’s fucking baseball after all!
Complete Bullshit.
Athletes are stronger, have better nutrition & PED’s like Crazy.
Make the Game HARDER not more Queef.
MLB, the stewards of baseball, have managed to turn professional baseball into a girls league. Bigger baseball, no running into the catcher, runner starts on 2nd in extra innings, DH in the NL (Good Lord!) etc. Thanks, guys!
they’re selling garbage again
‘we’re giving you what you want’
it is a shame- baseball used to be fun
Why not make the bases 10′ x 10′ and the pitcher’s mounds 100 yards from home plate?
If you approach the game as an entertainment product, theses changes make sense. The average baseball fan isn’t a hard-core enthusiast, so MLB has to give their majority audience what it wants. More people on base, more action than just a slugger at the plate trying to belt a home run (moneyball).
It all seems to have started by putting restrictor-plates on NASCAR, then the overpaid fucktards in football started taking knees,and now let’s ruin baseball.
I’d say Lacrosse would be next, but Lacrosse was always fucked up to begin with.
Field of Dreams turns to nightmare.
There’s going to be more offense which should put more casual fans in the ballparks and get more people watching or listening to the games at home. The pro sports are always tinkering with their rules not always for the better, but these changes might just liven up baseball for the average fan.
These rule changes are somewhat reasonable. The showboating between the pitcher and the batter needed to be sped up a bit…..They didn’t need bigger bases. The realignment of the infielders really shouldn’t matter because ” You hit it where they ain’t” … h/t Wee Willie Keeler….The DH is stupid. Putting a runner on 2nd in extra inning games is flat out stupider……They will fucking kill the game when the human being umpires no longer call the balls and strikes and I’m not sure that they are smart enough to not do that….
Make the bases 10′ x 10′ and make the players wear Kramer’s ‘tard shoes!
Just Amalgamate all sports into one.
-Make it all happen on ice with all players wearing ice skates
-Baseball is as big as a basketball
-Batter must hit ball into a 12 foot wide net guarded by a goalie in outfield to score 1 point
-Batter must circle the bases wearing football pads to get through 11 infielders trying to block him. If he makes it to Home Zone, he gets 6 points.
-No more queer-assed Butt Light sold at games.
Why not do away with the pitcher, who just slows down the game with all those deceptive breaking balls. And ticket prices would drop once teams no longer have to pay $35 million dollars for a left-handed cocaine addict. Just set it on a tee and take one swing and head to first base…
They should make the balls bigger, the bases closer together, and the pitchers required to deliver underhanded… and the players should all be required to cut their dicks off.