With the threat of baseball dying off among the younger generations as attention spans have become much shorter, the MLB made offseason changes that were meant to shorten the game and make it more exciting.
The most significant addition to the game has been the pitch clock. Pitchers now have 15 seconds to throw a pitch when the bases are empty and 20 seconds with a runner on base. Hitters need to be in the batter’s box with eight seconds on the pitch clock. The goal of this rule was to lower the average times of games. Heading into the season, the average game time had been steadily rising since 2014. When the pitching clock was implemented in the minors last season, the average time of game fell by 24 minutes compared to the 2021 season. Two weeks into the major league season, the average time of game is at 2:38, which is significantly lower than the 3:03 average from last season. This is the lowest average since the 1984 season, where the average game time was 2:35. In the Twins-Marlins game on April 4, Marlins right hander Sandy Alcantara pitched a complete game shutout that lasted only one hour and 57 minutes. It seems obvious that the pitch clock is meeting its goal of shortening game times. It will be interesting to see if this trend continues as the sample size increases with the season, or if game times rise up as pitchers and batters get more used to the time constraints.
In a sport that is not often action packed, stolen bases are something baseball fans get excited about. However, the average number of stolen bases in the past five years has declined from the five years before that. In an effort to encourage more stolen bases, the MLB implemented a new pickoff rule. Pitchers are now allowed two disengagements- which is anytime the pitcher makes a pickoff attempt, fakes a pickoff, or simply steps off the rubber for any reason per plate appearance- without penalty. If a third disengagement occurs, the pitcher will be charged with a balk unless at least one offensive player advances a base or an out is made on the ensuing play after the step off. This, along with the increase of each base from 15 inches to 18 inches, was made to encourage more base stealing action. With the current rate of stolen bases, the MLB is on track for 3,229 this season, which is a large jump from the 2,487 stolen bases in the 2022 season.
The final major rule change impacts the shift. Now, when a pitch is thrown, all four infielders are required to be on the infield dirt (or grass) with two on each side of second base. Players will be able to move as soon as the ball leaves the pitcher’s hand. There has yet to be a shift violation in a game. This rule change has been popular among hitters, as the league wide batting average is currently .249, which is an increase from the .233 it was at the same point through last season. This change was implemented to try to get more balls in action in each MLB game.
Although it has only been a few weeks, the MLB rule changes appear to be meeting their initial goals. Game time is significantly down, and batting averages and stolen base numbers are up. These changes could prove instrumental in “saving” baseball among the general public and making it relevant again.
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