Quote:
Originally Posted by steve B
After years of lengthening the game by making it "more entertaining" with every player having their own music, etc.
There should be a way without the silly micromanaging pitch clock. With it baseball will be poorer.
Spring baseball where pitchers and batters worked a bit more briskly to keep warm is enjoyable, as is August baseball where everyone moves a bit more slowly because 90+ in both temp and humididty isn't fun.
As much as the kids hate stuff that takes time, Imagine a game with no Mark Fidrych or Al Hrabosky,
Without Nomar and his admittedly over the top glove routine, bus also without Fisk and his Using the bat to help stretch.
Without a fast working pitcher pointing at the plate demanding the batter hurry up and get in the box. Or Jim Kaat sort of quick pitching in an already fairly fast era.
Without coaches going through elaborate sign sequences, when the real sign to steal might actually be a bench player moving his cap....
Antiseptic rushed baseball is colorless and less interesting.
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I looked up Mark Fidrych's game times in 1976 when he pitched exactly 9 innings:
5/15 1:57, 6/11 2:28, 6/16 2:08, 6/24 2:31, 6/28 1:51, 7/3 1:54
7/9 2:03, 7/20 2:39, 7/29 1:52, 8/7 2:10, 8/11 2:22, 8/25 1:48
9/7 2:19, 9/21 2:00, 9/28 1:48, 10/2 1:46
Fidrych worked very fast, yet he somehow found time to talk to the ball and fix the dirt on the mound.
It's the dead time that's getting taken out. Batters stepping out of the box and walking in a big circle around home plate after every pitch. Catchers coming out to the mound every other pitch for a meeting. Pitching coaches running out to the mound twice an inning.
No other sport had the number and types of interruptions baseball had. Personally, I blame those Yankee teams with Jeter and Posada. It was like every pitch required a team meeting before being thrown. There was just nothing like a 4 hour Yankees / Red Sox Sunday night game in July on ESPN. Ugh.