[Snowball]

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/2...ges-alter-game

Dueling proposals from MLB on Jan. 14 and the union on Friday covered a wide range of topics, according to sources. Among them include:

• A three-batter minimum for pitchers
  
• A universal designated hitter
  
• A single trade deadline before the All-Star break
  
• A 20-second pitch clock
  
• The expansion of rosters to 26 men, with a 12-pitcher maximum
  
• Draft advantages for winning teams and penalties for losing teams
  
• A study to lower the mound
  
• A rule that would allow two-sport amateurs to sign major league contracts
  

[dudekid]

I mean, they say this shit every year. How many times are we going to hear about a pitch clock? Purists and traditionalists aka staunchy old guys wont have any of it. I think the game needs change, I love baseball, but lets be real its a dying sport

[Snowball]

I mean, they say this shit every year. How many times are we going to hear about a pitch clock? Purists and traditionalists aka staunchy old guys wont have any of it. I think the game needs change, I love baseball, but lets be real its a dying sport

MLB attendance is far higher than NBA with 2x more games.
The only problem is they built the ballparks too big.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/l...018-misc.shtml
http://proxy.espn.com/nba/attendance

[jjgold]

we need games under 2:30

[lakerboy]

I like the 3 batter minimum

[unde0087]

Love the 3 batter minimum. Can't stand late in games when we see 4 different pitchers to get 3 outs.

[maggieballs]

No DH

20 seconds too fast

[deltgen]

Towards the end of the article, I read this gem:

Another league proposal would end all spring training games that are tied after 10 innings and use spring training and the All-Star Game as testing grounds for the rule that starts a runner on second base in the 10th inning of a tied game.

No, no, and hell no.

[cincinnatikid513]

how bout less games in the regular season could then go to best out of 3 for wild card and best of 7 for all playoff series

[Regul8er]

Teams would take advantage of the 3 batter minimum thing in no time. Pitchers would be faking injuries to get the lefty out of the pen...I can see it now.

[Otters27]

I like the 3 batter minimum

No. Part of the game

[VeggieDog]

Baseball is fine. Leave it alone.

[jjgold]

baseball ruined mainly because time of games

[slayer14]

No need to revamp baseball it not really going to get much popular

[SamsNCharge99]

only thing I want to see is a pitching clock. Especially late in the game 35-45 seconds in b/t pitches are insane.

Tennis has 25 second serve clock which is more than fair even for guys like Nadal. Pitchers can adapt easily to that

[GUMMO77]

Pitching clock and let players juice again is the sure fire way of injecting life back into the sport.

[kidcudi92]

Teams would take advantage of the 3 batter minimum thing in no time. Pitchers would be faking injuries to get the lefty out of the pen...I can see it now.

Yep

It’s strategy and part of the game to use any pitcher anytime you want, fukking stupid to make it super easy for the batting team to take advantage of this rule

[kidcudi92]

So some guy comes in starts walking people and handing out hits but he HAS to face 3 batters?

Even if the manager is like oh shit he doesn’t have it today on the 1st or 2nd batter

Ridiculous

[Venom72]

Def needs the pitch clock,length of games is imo the worst thing about baseball, but like another poster said i doubt any changes would make mlb more popular

[kidcudi92]

Def needs the pitch clock,length of games is imo the worst thing about baseball, but like another poster said i doubt any changes would make mlb more popular

Changes only can ostracize the current fans imo


Don't see people flocking to baseball over some tweaks that they probably don't even understand

[bigtymer56]

MLB attendance is far higher than NBA with 2x more games.
The only problem is they built the ballparks too big.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/l...018-misc.shtml
http://proxy.espn.com/nba/attendance

Attendance figures actually seem to be close when you factor in that MLB stadiums hold at least twice as many people as the average NBA arena.

[bigtymer56]

Changes only can ostracize the current fans imo


Don't see people flocking to baseball over some tweaks that they probably don't even understand

Bring back steriods. People loved it when guys were hitting 60+ home runs and Roger Clemens was throwing bats at people.

[Mr KLC]

When Cactus League and Grapefruit League games begin next week, a pitch clock will be part of the action, commissioner Rob Manfred confirmed to reporters Sunday evening.

Manfred added he is undecided about a pitch clock for the 2019 regular season. For now, a pitch clock will be used this spring to help players get used to it in case it is implemented in the regular season. Manfred can unilaterally implement a 20-second pitch clock this year, though he said he hopes to reach an agreement with the MLBPA.

A 20-second pitch clock was implemented at the Double-A and Triple-A levels in 2015. An automatic ball is added to the count each time a pitcher takes too long to begin his delivery. It's unclear what sort of penalties will be used in spring training. It could be pitchers will be given a grace period to adjust and receive only a warning at first.

MLB has implemented several rule changes in recent years in an effort to improve pace of play. Batters are not allowed to leave the batter's box after taking a pitch, and last year teams were limited to six mound visits per game.

In addition to a pitch clock, Manfred can unilaterally reduce the number of available mound visits from six to five this year, and also implement an extra innings tiebreaker rule (i.e. extra innings start with a runner at second) for spring training games and the All-Star Game.

[pavyracer]

Something needs to be done so that the games are shortened to 2 hrs max. The average fan doesn't have 4 hrs everyday to watch.

[MinnesotaFats]

we need games under 2:30

This is all we need

Game is just fine, make em 2- 2.5 hours and all is well

20 sec clock, max 4 pitchers per game, min 3 batters per pitcher. To compensate raise mound to 1968 level

[deltgen]

MLB games average about three hours and people complain they are too long. NFL games average about three hours without complaints. Not much difference in style either as the NFL is mostly the players standing around with very brief bursts of action. There is nothing to "fix" in baseball, it is just the fact that it is more popular regionally as opposed to the NFL where people will watch any team, any time. The daily attendance figures in baseball are fine, and the regional TV numbers are fine, but the nationally broadcast games don't get the greatest of ratings which is why people say there is something "wrong". If the goal of the MLB powers-that-be is to be as nationally popular as the NFL with these various changes, they better be damn sure they will work because too many of these change the very nature of the game.

[KiDBaZkiT]

They can change whatever fuggin rules they want I am so pumped spring training is thursday!

[MinnesotaFats]

https://www.baseball-reference.com/l...MLB/misc.shtml

The game time and the mound hight (higher) will speed things up and get teams off this long ball only philosophy. More contact hitters

[BuckyOne]

Towards the end of the article, I read this gem:

Another league proposal would end all spring training games that are tied after 10 innings and use spring training and the All-Star Game as testing grounds for the rule that starts a runner on second base in the 10th inning of a tied game.

No, no, and hell no.

How do you feel about just calling it a tie if it happens during the regular season?

[b1slickguy]

Pitching clock and let players juice again is the sure fire way of injecting life back into the sport.

^^^This.

(I see what you did there)

[deltgen]

How do you feel about just calling it a tie if it happens during the regular season?

You know, Bucky--all the various changes that have been enacted/discussed, I had never considered the concept of a tie. I'd have to think about that for awhile, but my immediate thought is that I could live with that. Perhaps have an "overtime" first though, say three innings. I rather like the concept of always having a winner and loser in a game, but I'm not one of the people who is averse to any and all change. Good question.