How MLB's Rule Changes Are Affecting Baseball

"This could be a hot take, but I'm going to go ahead and say it... baseball is the best it's been in quite some time. From the World Baseball Classic to the first few days of the regular season, I am falling in love with the game of baseball all over again," says baseball YouTuber Preston Miklich, better known as his YouTube profile name, Fuzzy. Fuzzy is one of many baseball fans who is beginning to appreciate MLB's new rules.

The Joint Competition Committee (comprised of an umpire, four current MLB players, and six members appointed by Major League Baseball) approved three new rules for MLB games in 2023 last October. The rules are designed to speed up the game, and provide fans with more action on the field.

One of the new rules introduced by the MLB is the pitch timer. The pitch timer is designed to speed up the game. This rule, however, does not only apply to pitchers (as the name suggests), but applies to batters as well. The pitch timer, or pitch clock as some call it, allows the pitcher 15 seconds to release the ball from the mound with no runners on base, and 20 seconds when there are runners on base. Between batters, the pitch timer will count down from 30 seconds, to eliminate "dead time" in between at bats. But, that is not the only part of this rule that affects batters in the league. Batters have eight seconds to get into the batters box before the next pitch is thrown. If the batter does not comply with this rule, and they take longer than eight seconds to get ready, it is an automatic strike. If the pitcher does not obey the 15-20 seconds that they have to release the ball, it is an automatic ball. These automatic pitches do not factor into a pitcher's pitch count.

The pitcher is also allowed two "disengagements", which, according to the MLB, are pick-off attempts and/or when the pitcher steps off the mound. If the pitcher throws a third pick-off attempt and fails to get the runner out, the runner advanced a base. Disengagements do not include mound visits or timeouts. Umpires have the ability to override the pitch timer for specific occasions.

Another one of the new rules is that there are bigger bases. The bases are about the size of a large pizza box (18 inches), compared to 16 inch bases in previous years. Therefore, the distance to first base from home plate and from third base to home is three inches less than it was in 2022. A primary reason for implementing this rule is, according to CBS, to lessen the likelihood of an injury on the basepaths.

The final rule introduced in 2023 is the shift ban. A shift, is, according to the MLB, "a term used to describe the situational defensive realignment of fielders away from their 'traditional' starting points." This new rule prevents fielders from moving sides of the infield (they must stay near those "'traditional' starting points"). Therefore, there must be two fielders on each side of second base (so, teams cannot use extreme shifts as seen in seasons past where three infielders are on the same side of the infield). Infielders also must have both feet on the infield dirt before the pitch is thrown. This means that there cannot be a shortstop playing in left-center field. They have to be on the infield dirt.

These new rules have triggered various reactions from players and fans alike. In a statements to the New York Times, Cleveland Guardians manager, and former MLB player, Terry Francona said, "I think that we’ll make the adjustments, and I do think it’ll be a good game... I just think there’s going to be growing pains, because these are bigger changes than we’ve ever had before and you’re asking people to do something they’ve never done. So it’s going to take a minute to do that."

Radio show host Lance McAlister tweeted a question asking if fans liked the new rules. The replies to his tweet showed just how varied the opinions of fans actually are.

Twitter user Ray Banks replied to this question with, "Love it! Especially the pitch clock. From little league to the minors these guys were taught to hustle/play fast. When they get to the Show and those cameras come on, it was about face time and posing."

Another user tweeted the opposing side of the argument, saying, "No, still don't like it. Some strategy taken out of baseball."

There are logical arguments for both sides, and the rules have improved a variety of aspects of baseball already.

One noticeable aspect is an improvement in fan viewership. During Opening Week alone, Fox Sports reported a 10% boost in baseball game viewership, ESPN reported an 11% boost in views, and MLB.TV saw a record-breaking single day viewership, up 42% from their previous record of 121 million viewers.

Other perks of the new rules include more offense. This year, the league batting average is up to .250, compared to a .243 batting average in 2022.

Stolen bases have also increased. On Opening Day of 2023 alone, there were 21 of 23 successful stolen base attempts, which was much higher than stolen bases on previous Opening Days.

Since the beginning of the season, game times have also been much shorter. In 2022, games were running (on average) about 3 hours and 6 minutes. But, with the pitch clock implemented in 2023, game time has dropped to 2 hours and 38 minutes, nearly 30 minutes faster than in seasons past.

However, there have been some notable pitch clock violations, which have affected the outcomes of innings, and even some games. One of the more notable infractions was recently, when the San Diego Padres played the Arizona Diamondbacks in San Diego. Padres player Manny Machado was called out on strikes after he failed to meet the eight-second deadline to be ready for the next pitch, ending the inning.

Another notable infraction came in Spring Training, when the Boston Red Sox were playing the Atlanta Braves. It was the bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, full count, and the batter was called out on a pitch timer violation, ending the game. This was the first time that the reality of the "new baseball" set in for baseball fans all over the world. The new rules are changing the way the game is played.

There will always be baseball traditionalists who believe that the rule changes are bad for baseball, and who wish it was played exactly how it was in the 1960s and 70s, when there were only 20 teams and the average MLB player salary was only $6,000. And there will also be people who are all for change and want the game to be more entertaining and fun. These new rules are changing baseball, and change is something that is inevitable, especially when it comes to America's pastime.

---

Works Cited Baer, Jack. “MLB Streaming Viewership up 42% on Opening Day in 1st Season with Pitch Clock.” Yahoo! Sports, 4 Apr. 2023, sports.yahoo.com/mlb-streaming-viewership-up-42-on-opening-day-in-1st-season-with-pitch-clock-220551890.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAEGee2cwx_r8HJXxZEKMrS07A7F9wdZjaP86QeLbdQmbowrpOVcW9v4kCRUyRq9kEOtGap9yWbF3Ko8K2ogh0r2SP5YyPYId2-vAgV4_ZnK_pSbc8_2cKlMNga81sAa_iRH9oO6pxZ5te-vRKmFBHXxnaf52Z6We3IW4QxlJhOco. Bengel, Chris. “MLB Lockout: Why MLB, MLBPA Want to Make Bases Bigger.” CBSSports.com, 8 Mar. 2022, www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-lockout-why-mlb-mlbpa-want-to-make-bases-bigger/#:~:text=First%20and%20foremost%2C%20MLB%20believes. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023. Borelli, Matt. “Everything to Know about New MLB Rules for 2023 Season.” Dodger Blue, 25 Feb. 2023, dodgerblue.com/everything-to-know-about-new-mlb-rules-for-2023-season/2023/02/24/#:~:text=The%202023%20MLB%20season%20will. Castrovince, Anthony. “Pitch Timer, Shift Restrictions among Announced Rule Changes for ’23.” MLB.com, 1 Feb. 2023, www.mlb.com/news/mlb-2023-rule-changes-pitch-timer-larger-bases-shifts#:~:text=The%20pitch%20timer%2C%20defensive%20shift. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023. “Defensive Shift Limits (2023 Rule Change) | Glossary.” MLB.com, www.mlb.com/glossary/rules/defensive-shift-limits. Fuzzy. “BREAKING: Anthony Rendon SUSPENDED by MLB! Cody Bellinger’s First Cubs Home Run (MLB Recap).” Www.youtube.com, 4 Apr. 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NbZ8kpSq-A. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023. “How New Shift Limits Will Work | 02/15/2023.” MLB.com, 15 Feb. 2023, www.mlb.com/video/martinez-on-new-rules?t=rule-changes&?affiliateId=glossary. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023. “Https://Mobile.twitter.com/LanceMcAlister/Status/1643755306990686208.” Twitter, mobile.twitter.com/LanceMcAlister/status/1643755306990686208. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023. Jackson, Wilton. “MLB Opening Day Featured Most Stolen Bases since 1907.” Sports Illustrated, 31 Mar. 2023, www.si.com/mlb/2023/03/31/mlb-opening-day-stolen-bases-increase-rule-changes. Kepner, Tyler. ““I Felt like I Was at Warp Speed”: Baseball Adapts to a New Era.” The New York Times, 2 Apr. 2023, www.nytimes.com/2023/04/02/sports/baseball/pitch-clock-new-rules.html. “Major League Batting Year-By-Year Averages.” Baseball-Reference.com, www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/bat.shtml. “Major League Miscellaneous Year-By-Year Averages and Totals.” Baseball-Reference.com, www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/misc.shtml. “Pitch Timer (2023 Rule Change) | Glossary.” MLB.com, www.mlb.com/glossary/rules/pitch-timer. “Shifts | Glossary.” MLB.com, www.mlb.com/glossary/statcast/shifts#:~:text=A%20shift%20is%20a%20term. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023. Snyder, Matt. “MLB Rules Changes: What to Know about the Bigger Bases, How They Could Increase Stolen Bases.” CBSSports.com, 2 Mar. 2023, www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-rules-changes-what-to-know-about-the-bigger-bases-how-they-could-increase-stolen-bases/#:~:text=They%20are%20now%20bigger. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023. Stark, Jayson. “Clock-off Confusion: MLB Game Ends with a Pitch-Clock Violation. Really.” The Athletic, 25 Feb. 2023, theathletic.com/4252370/2023/02/25/mlb-pitch-clock-violation/. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023. Stebbins, Jack. “MLB Unveils Rule Changes for 2023, Including Pitch Timer, Shift Limits and Bigger Bases.” CNBC, 9 Sept. 2022, www.cnbc.com/2022/09/09/mlb-rule-changes-pitch-clock-shift-limits-bigger-bases-coming-in-2023.html. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023. Warja, Bob. “Come to Think of It: The Day That Changed Major League Baseball Forever.” Bleacher Report, 10 Apr. 2009, bleacherreport.com/articles/154265-come-to-think-of-it-the-day-that-changed-major-league-baseball-forever#:~:text=From%20the%201940. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023.

Image of Trea Turner and Pete Alonso credit All-Pro Reels (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Article thumbnail is in the public domain (credit Library of Congress).