Major League Baseball’s playing committee reportedly approved a series of rule changes for 2023 in a vote Friday, including an on-field clock and defensive position limits. The new rules were approved despite the four player representatives voting unanimously against two of the proposals. ESPN’s Jeff Passan first reported the voting results. As stipulated in the new collective bargaining agreement, which was negotiated this offseason, an 11-member committee — six from the commissioner’s office, four players and one umpire — can discuss and approve rule changes in less time than was previously allowed. previously. Essentially, new rules can be implemented for an upcoming season. In recent years, MLB has experimented with a variety of rules and versions of those rules at different minor league and independent league levels, with the goal of speeding up the game and generating more offense through action on the basepaths. This year, games at the major league level are more than half an hour longer than they were in 1976, and the league batting average is .243, the lowest since 1968, while over 34% of at bats are against the defensive shift. Data from the minors this season shows that pitch clocks, for example, shave an average of 26 minutes off the total length of a game. Here are the rules details, as originally reported by The Athletic on Thursday.
Tar clock
The field clock will be set for 15 seconds when the bases are empty and 20 seconds when runners are on. Pitchers must start their movement until it is over. The clock also sets limits on other players. Catchers must be in their box with nine seconds left. The batter must be in the box and “notify the pitcher” with eight seconds left. If pitchers or catchers violate the clock, they will be charged an automatic ball. If a hit hits it, it will be hit with an automatic hit. The clock is supposed to start when the pitcher has the ball and both the catcher and batter are on the dirt near home plate, which leaves room for interpretation (and possibly confusion). The story continues Between strokes, there will be a 30-second clock, and participation breaks will be 2 minutes, 15 seconds. Mound visits will now run with a 30 second clock. Most importantly, pitchers will only be allowed to come off the mound twice per appearance – for pickups or otherwise. MLB calls these “releases.” If a pitcher leaves for the third time, a bunt is assessed unless he gets an out (as in a pickoff) or runners advance on the play. Meanwhile, rags will be limited to one timeout per plate appearance. Clock problems cannot be checked on replay.
Limits on displacement within a field
Defenses will be required to have four players standing completely within the infield boundary. Two of these four must be on each side of second base. Teams must designate players to stand on each side and cannot switch sides unless there is a change. Violation of the rule results in a ball and a dead ball unless the player reaches play. The hitting team can also choose to accept other plays, such as a sacrifice fly.
Bigger bases
The bases will be 18-inch squares instead of 15-inch squares, which is designed to encourage stolen bases and prevent injuries. The vote was largely formal, as the Commissioner’s office has a majority vote on the committee. The players provided feedback on the initial proposals and were able to secure an extra second on the pitch clock, but ultimately felt their concerns were not substantially addressed. Among their proposals that failed to gain traction was a transition period in which enforcement would only be through warnings rather than awarding balls and strikes. The committee players — pitchers Tyler Glasnow and Jack Flaherty, and position players Whit Merrifield and Austin Slater — voted unanimously against pitch time and shift limits. They voted for bigger bases. In a statement on Friday, the union said: Players live the game — day in and day out. Rules and regulations on the field affect their preparation, performance and ultimately the integrity of the game itself. Players from around the league participated in on-field rule denials through the Competition Committee and provided specific and actionable feedback on the changes proposed by the Commissioner’s Office. Major League Baseball was unwilling to meaningfully address the areas of concern raised by the players, and as a result, the players on the Competition Committee voted unanimously against implementing rules covering defensive changes and the use of a pitch timer.
Who will shift limits affect?
Left-handed pullers are the most frequently shifted players. Joey Gallo, Corey Seager and Anthony Rizzo have faced infielders playing either a changeup or a “strategic” alignment in more than 97% of the pitches they’ve seen in 2022. The strategic alignment, as described by Statcast, includes a variety of placement patterns where there are still two infielders on each side of second, but some versions of them include things that will be banned in 2023, like a second baseman playing in shallow right field. Not surprisingly, heavy hitters face the fewest changes. Whit Merrifield, Tim Anderson, Amed Rosario and Jean Segura are among the fighters seeing the fewest shifts in 2022. Shifting within a field doesn’t necessarily work exactly as you think. While we think of it as affecting balls in play, data shows that offsets also affect the likelihood of a hit or walk, often in opposite directions depending on the batter’s ability. His ban, in other words, won’t be a silver bullet for the offense, and the end results may not be straightforward. For a select example, Los Angeles Dodgers star left-hander Freddie Freeman faced a changeup about 57% of the time in 2022 and fared better in those plate appearances than when he didn’t face a changeup. It’s also worth noting that the new rules only limit infield shifts. It could very well help hitters, especially pull hitters, rack up a few more hits on the ground, but progress in outfield positioning is also a huge factor contributing to the strongest defense in all of baseball.
Who will be affected by the pitch clock?
A huge number of pitchers and hitters will have to adjust their habits when the pitch clock goes into effect next season. While pitchers are often under the microscope, batters who stay out of the box or conduct complex routines — think Nomar Garciaparra — between pitches can also slow down the game. The slowest pitchers on the mound in 2022, according to Statcast’s Pitch Tempo metrics, include Shohei Ohtani, Corbin Burnes, Michael Kopech and Luis Garcia. Pitchers who might not need to adjust much? Not surprisingly, it gravitates toward younger pitchers, many of whom played with pitch clock in the minors. Oakland’s Cole Irvin, Milwaukee’s Aaron Ashby and San Francisco ace Logan Webb were the fastest with the bases empty. Guardians ace and former Cy Young winner Shane Bieber also works quickly, one of the few pitchers whose average delivery time would satisfy the upcoming pitch timer’s approval. The 2022 sluggers, again via Statcast, include a litany of Red Sox, Astros and Mets. Christian Vazquez, JD Martinez and Mark Canha stand out as particularly methodical hitters, to put it mildly. Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo and Trevor Story are also slowing things down, especially with men on base.
