Baseball Changing Important Rule

[Jim Koepke]

The four pitches of an intentional walk may be a thing of the past:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/baseball-intentional-walk-change_us_58ad128ee4b04a0b274e172e?

Wild pitches, passed balls and a pitcher not being able to throw a strike after throwing a walk will be missed.

What if a manager wants an intentional walk, but also wants to change pitchers and wants a few more moments of warm up? Tell the pitcher but not the umpire?

jtk

[John A langley]

Another Not very good idea

[Scott Brader]

They keep trying to make up ways to speed up the game. They could save themselves a lot of trouble if they just called the rules that already exist. For example, there have long been rules about how long a pitcher can take to deliver a pitch once he gets the ball from the catcher. Get rid of the thirty seconds to a minute between pitches and the game will speed right up. The umpires do not have to grant time just because a player asks for it. Watch some of the old games; the players rarely asked for time because the umpires were not likely to give it unless there was a legitimate reason to stop the flow of the game. They also have long television timeouts (I know - they pay the bills) every time they change pitchers. That gets really long in today's game of bringing in a pitcher to face a single batter sometimes.

I have been a baseball fanatic since I was a kid, but I have found my interest in the sport dwindling greatly in the last couple of decades. The no-pitch intentional walk is one more nail in the coffin. Even when coaching kids baseball I wanted the opposing pitcher to have to put four more pitches on his arm if they wanted to walk my strongest hitter.

Scott

[Mark Blatter]

They will save 14 seconds per game on average. To put that into perspective, that is double the length of the average Pro Bull ride.

It does show that sports is truly a 'profession'. It is all about money, not the sport, and the leagues will make any change to improve their profit.

[Scott Brader]

It is all about money, not the sport, and the leagues will make any change to improve their profit.

You nailed it!

[Brian Tymchak]

They will save 14 seconds per game on average. To put that into perspective, that is double the length of the average Pro Bull ride.

It does show that sports is truly a 'profession'. It is all about money, not the sport, and the leagues will make any change to improve their profit.

Not sure how this particular move improves profit. If that were the case, I would think MLB would try to lengthen games to add advertising dollars.

The auto walk doesn't make much difference to me. It always seemed useless to me throw those 4 pitches.. (although it does up pitch counts). I wish they would crack down on the batters that have to step out to readjust and retrighten their hitting gloves, and then go through their rituals to take their stance for every pitch. Then we would get some meaningful improvement in game times.

[Scott Brader]

I wish they would crack down on the batters that have to step out to readjust and retrighten their hitting gloves, and then go through their rituals to take their stance for every pitch. Then we would get some meaningful improvement in game times.

They enacted that rule a couple of seasons ago; however, they put enough exclusions in the rule that it ends up having very little real impact on the game length.

[Jamie Buxton]

It is a trivial tweak. What I'd like to see is that all umpires use the same strike zone. That would be a big (and good) change.

[Scott Brader]

What I'd like to see is that all umpires use the same strike zone.

Using the strike zone in the rule book would speed up the game dramatically! This tiny (and floating) strike zone has been horrible!

[Jamie Buxton]

And while I'm fixing the rules... Everybody bats. This one is a safety issue, in my mind. A pitcher who is considering throwing at a batter will think twice if he knows he is going to step into the box next inning. If you want to keep over-the-hill sluggers in the game, you can keep the DH. But everybody bats.

[Jerome Stanek]

make a rule where the batter only can ask for time or leave the box 2 times for each time he is up

[Pat Barry]

I liked watching the intentional walks! And it takes a lot more than 14 seconds to do a typical intentional walk. Not sure how someone calculated that.

[Jim Koepke]

I liked watching the intentional walks! And it takes a lot more than 14 seconds to do a typical intentional walk. Not sure how someone calculated that.

Not every game has an intentional walk. The 14 seconds is an average determined from all games, intentional walk or not.

For an answer better than that you will have to look at the WSJ article from which the information was quoted.

jtk

[Lee Schierer]

Another Not very good idea

I agree, I have seen wild pitches thrown during and right after intentional walks. It will remove part of the game.

[Brian Tymchak]

Using the strike zone in the rule book would speed up the game dramatically! This tiny (and floating) strike zone has been horrible!

Agree 110%!

[Larry Frank]

I would use the computer to call balls and strikes. Some umpires are just jokes with the calls. I can deal with an occasional missed call but the way it is today is just not right.

[mark r johnson]

How about eliminating all the breaks for tv commercials. It's got to be more than 14 seconds per game.

[Dick Latshaw]

How about eliminating all the breaks for tv commercials. It's got to be more than 14 seconds per game.

I know - commercials are the big bucks. BUT... And now they've done it to hockey too.:mad: At least I can still really enjoy fútbol (er..soccer).

[Kev Williams]

since it IS about money, start charging slow players for 'delay of game'. Since computers are already keeping track of everything, have them track the batters and pitchers. The average time it should take for basic play should be easy to figure out as a baseline. The slowpoke batters & pitchers who scratch & burp & adjust & grind cleats & spit & wipe & basically fart around should be fined for slowing down the game. Have time limits for each 'interaction'. Add up the total time used divided by interactions. Go over the limit, charge 'em $500 per minute wasted. Players having money removed from their pockets will likely quit goofing around so much ;)

And how about how the TV networks bombard the corners of the TV screen with their own commercials-- for the privilege of broadcasting the game (ahem), they should offer to cut their commercials in half to allow actual commercials to bombard the TV corners, which could offset each commercial break by 1:30 or so. Also, the broadcaster could just show their commercials during the commercials..

[David Helm]

Frankly, being the long time baseball fan that I am (became a fan in 1947) I think they should find ways to make the game longer!

[George Werner]

At least this one isn't as dumb as the other idea they're testing in the minors this spring. During extra inning games, they're going to start every inning with a runner on second.

http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/news/mlb-to-use-rookie-ball-to-test-new-extra-innings-rule/b8kvdzewbjl31c82tbm828cs4

[Nick Decker]

Changing the intentional walk rule is silliness, and the commish is hitting this "speed up the game" thing too hard, IMO.

But it brings to mind an old story about Don Drysdale, who had a bit of a thing about hitting batters. His manager once signaled him from the dugout to put a guy on. Drysdale promptly hit the batter with the next pitch. When he went in between innings, his manager asked him why the hit batter? Drysdale said, "Hey, you wanted me to put the guy on, why waste four pitches when I can do it with one?"

[Mike Cutler]

Watch Dustin Pedroia at bat if you want to speed up the game. Basically everything he does in between pitches is complete nonsense, and should be removed from the game. He's a very good player, but I cannot stand to watch him at bat.

[Chris Padilla]

Abolish IBB: Unnecessary change.

Abolish DH: Necessary change.

[Jim Koepke]

I am wondering who is it actually who wants the games to go faster?

As an occasional fan it doesn't bother me one bit that baseball is a slow moving game with excitement doled out in short intense doses.

jtk

[Phil Stone]

I am wondering who is it actually who wants the games to go faster?

As an occasional fan it doesn't bother me one bit that baseball is a slow moving game with excitement doled out in short intense doses.

jtk

Yeah, that seems me to be the point of the game. When I want non-stop action, I watch hockey. I love the contemplative nature of baseball -- it's one of the few respites we have from our modern breakneck pace. (EDIT: that and handplaning. :))

Also, down with the DH. Anybody who watches NL ball on a regular basis knows how much the DH rule takes away from the game.

[Van Huskey]

I would use the computer to call balls and strikes. Some umpires are just jokes with the calls. I can deal with an occasional missed call but the way it is today is just not right.

I am a fan of PITCHf/x but it ain't gonna happen anytime soon.

[Joe Tilson]

Now you see why I don't watch pro sports.
NASCAR really messed it up this year, along with baseball.

[Yonak Hawkins]

I would use the computer to call balls and strikes. Some umpires are just jokes with the calls. I can deal with an occasional missed call but the way it is today is just not right.

I agree with you, Frank. The playoffs last year are a great example of bad ball and strike calls changing the course of games and, thereby, the series.

A pitcher could throw his best pitch on the outside corner but, if the umpire sees it differently (incorrectly), the result is reversed. On the other hand, a hitter could have the best eye in the league but, if the umpire doesn't, it doesn't do the hitter any good, with bad results.

I have written many letters to the commissioner to institute a computerized system to make the game fair and consistent but they'd rather institute stupid rules like suspending throwing pitches for an intentional walk.

[Yonak Hawkins]

As Mr. Cub said, "Let's play two."