OT - What's Wrong With Baseball? Could the Game Be Improved?

[bnorth]

This one is easy for me. All stadiums are to be indoor, no more of this playing baseball outside BS.

I live out in the middle of nowhere. I used to make the 600 mile round trip several times a year to go to games in Minneapolis. Yes the Twins suck but it is by far the closest place to watch games. When they built that insanely stupid outside stadium I quit watching and going to games.

This year is the first time I have enjoyed watching games again so I figured I would go see the Yankees play the Twins recently. It took about 10 minutes to remember why I hated outside stadiums. It was hot, humid and miserable out. The Dome was old but there was going to be a game and it was going to be 70 degrees and beautiful. I am sure many players would agree with me.

[Snapolit1]

Games just take too long. Make the game 7 innings.

I love movies too, but wont go see a movie that is three and a half hours long.

[bbcard1]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Games just take too long. Make the game 7 innings.

I love movies too, but wont go see a movie that is three and a half hours long.

The problem with this is that it would take many records out of context. My counterproposal, if we're really worried about it is to make the count of two strikes and three balls the standard. While strikeouts as a historical measure would become less relevant, the 3000 strikeout plateau is no longer hallowed ground.

[pitchernut]

1. Start the season on Memorial day, start the playoffs Labor day.
2. Terminate the DH with extreme prejudice.
3. One "timeout" per team per inning.
4. Make the batter stay in the box once entered unless contact is made with the
ball, make the pitcher stay on the mound until the batter makes contact with ball.

[jbbama]

No commercial interruptions for any televised game (which is most these days). Play it like soccer, you put a sponsor logo in the corner of the screen and move on, you never break away from the action. "The first inning is being brought to you by snickers"....etc, etc....... just my 2 (worthless) cents. Im not in a hurry to get the game over, i just dont want the game being delayed by commercials. PS, i absolutely detest any and all commercials pertaining to any TV viewing.

[doug.goodman]

No divisions, just two leagues, top 6 teams make the playoffs

No interleague play

154 game schedule (each team plays every other team in league 11 times)


Three game tie-breaker series if tie for last spot

Seven game series. 1-6; 2-5, 3-4

Seven game series. Winner of 2-5 vs winner of 3-4

That winner plays winner of 1-6 in seven game series

That winner plays other league winner in NINE game series


Bye, bye DH

Return of 4 pitch intentional walk

[Mark]

#1. to make the games faster, I would limit the roster to 22 players. This means starters would try to go 9, which means FEWER pitching changes and more incentive to pitch to contact.

#2. re-establish NL and AL umpire crews. Give the leagues some character and dignity.

#3. of course, no DH. Maybe on Tuesdays bw AL teams.

#4. Because the rosters have been trimmed, the players union will go crazy. Ergo we will need to add 2 new teams to compensate for cutting the number of players. They would be in Mexico City and somewhere else.

#5. world series games begin 5 p.m. eastern on weekends and at least once at 5 pm during the week.

[Peter_Spaeth]

http://www.foxsports.com/mlb/story/p...ramirez-060817

[Section103]

Batters are not allowed to leave the box once they have entered.

5 seconds of dead time is set for batter/coach and pitcher/catcher to relay signs and then play is on. Pitcher then has 5-10 seconds to pitch, pitch out or other.

Each team gets 3 pitchers per 9 innings. 1 additional pitcher for 2 extra innings.

Pete Rose is banned for life and banned for life a second time in case of reincarnation or resurrection.

[KMayUSA6060]

For the game of baseball...

Bring back collisions and intentional walks.

For the fans...

No cell phone usage during play.

[KCRfan1]

I would reduce the number of teams. This should weed out lesser talent, and increase the level of play, making the game more enjoyable.

[hysell]

Real simple fix to the time of games! Call strikes as they are in the book, if you cant, get some one who can? We have replay for most bad calls, now! Need the strike zone called !

[SmokyBurgess]

Originally Posted by KCRfan1

I would reduce the number of teams. This should weed out lesser talent, and increase the level of play, making the game more enjoyable.

That would be my first move too. Less teams, better pitching...thus taking care of the length of games,

[frankbmd]

I sort of thought I wasn't alone with ideas to improve the game and appreciate all the suggestions. One topic that hasn't been addressed directly though is the increasing number of strikeouts and the apparent increase in non-PED home runs.

The strike out issue is largely due to the nine man bullpen of 100MPH relievers who can no longer pitch more than one inning.

The home run issue may be related as well to pitch speed, as the 500 foot fungo is as yet unheard of (I think).

Both the strike out and the home run render the fielders superfluous, which raises several possible rule changes.

1. Increase the weight of the ball, which would slow down the pitching, decrease the strikeouts and the home runs. Not sure how much weight to add, but taken to the extreme I can't envision a bowling ball leaving the infield, let alone clearing the fence.

As a corollary I would add decreasing the weight of the ball, which would have the same effect as in Wiffle Ball.

2. Alternatively make the strike out a strategic decision. Every inning or half inning if you will. If a batter strikes out, the team in the field must remove one fielder for the remainder of the inning. Two strike outs and two fielders must sit. And a three strikeout inning would result in the reduction of a fielder for the remainder of the game. (Rules similar to the penalty box and game misconduct in hockey.)

[vintagebb2014]

+1

[frankbmd]

Originally Posted by bnorth

1.26 million, that includes batting/fielding practice and games. That is the estimate I found.

Ben, that's only 42,000 balls per team. Are you sure?

Hell, today the balls are replaced before the "spit" dries.

Originally Posted by tiger8mush

I think Little League is more "pure" than MLB. Enough 25 man rosters. You get 15. Thats right, it means your pitchers are also positional players and batters.

Ironically 25 man rosters are compromising, since the introduction of the 8-9 man bullpen of one inning (one batter) pitchers. Rarely is a bench player available in extra inning games as a result.

[savedfrommyspokes]

Eliminate commercial breaks when a pitching change occurs during an inning. If the manager walks out of the dugout and signals, the pitcher can jog in within less than 15 seconds. I can throw 8 warm up pitches (to get used to the mound) in less than 30 seconds. 45 seconds should be enough time. Next time you are at a game, watch how much time gets killed by the pitcher waiting for the commercial break to end after a pitching change. These pitching change commercials run about 1 min 50 sec each. Eliminate five during the inning pitching change commercials in a single game and that would save 5 or so extra minutes per game.

Obviously the lost revenue would be a concern for MLB/the teams. Easy, on air announcers already promote products/services during the telecast (for a cost), let that occur during pitching changes. Also, on mlb.tv, on most of my devices, there is no commercial playing(some devices there are though)....why not sell more commercial time on mlb.tv to compensate for the "lost" revenue from not showing commercials during pitching changes.

Of course, if both pitchers are throwing great games or all of the pitching changes occur between innings, there is no revenue from this commercial time anyway. Then again, games with few if any pitching changes are the quick games.

[conor912]

Originally Posted by Section103

Batters are not allowed to leave the box once they have entered.

This actually IS a rule...it just never gets enforced!

[Tom S.]

Games take too long now, especially when there are so many calls to the bullpen being made.

To help speed up the pace, they should eliminate the reliever from taking the 8 or so warmup pitches he throws before he faces the batter. Isn't the 5 to 10 minutes he was throwing in the bullpen beforehand enough of a warmup?

[cardsfan73]

The game has changed for sure, but I still love it just the same.

I remember being a kid in the early 80s and having the old timers tell me how bad the game was now compared to the good old days.

I am sure kids now will do the same when they grow up.

[BleedinBlue]

The expansion of the rosters in September is a joke. Limit the number of eligible players each day to 25. Enough of the 40 eligible players. I'm tired of seeing games with 20 total pitchers appearing.

Solution: each manager must submit his 25 player lineup card (out of the expanded rostered players) at the start of the game. Only those 25 are eligible for that game. This will still allow for deeper benches and bullpens since the 4 idle starting pitchers will obviously not be on the card. And resting or dinged players can take a day off and have their spot filled as well.

[BleedinBlue]

Originally Posted by Tom S.

Games take too long now, especially when there are so many calls to the bullpen being made.

To help speed up the pace, they should eliminate the reliever from taking the 8 or so warmup pitches he throws before he faces the batter. Isn't the 5 to 10 minutes he was throwing in the bullpen beforehand enough of a warmup?

Pitchers will argue the mounds are different and they need to take a few pitches to get it to their liking.

[BleedinBlue]

Shoot the DH's. It will never happen but I'd endorse it.

Alternatively, switch when the DH is used in interleague games. Use the DH in NL parks and make the pitcher swing in AL Stadiums. Let the fans see the other style of play in person.

[rats60]

Originally Posted by BleedinBlue

Pitchers will argue the mounds are different and they need to take a few pitches to get it to their liking.

Give them 3 pitches. No warm up pitches between innings. Limit time between pitches. No stopping the game to go to mound for players or manager. Manager hits button to change pitchers. Limit number of pitching changes (soccer has limited substitutions, why not baseball?). No throwing the ball around infield after outs. Limit commercial time between innings. There is a 12 second rule between pitches, enforce it. If the pitcher doesn't release the ball in 12 seconds, it's a ball. If the batter isn't in the box, it's a strike. Baseball games used to be under 2 hours, now over 3 hours. They need to speed up play so most games are done in 2 hours.

[Rhotchkiss]

Allow only 2 relievers and starting pitchers must pitch at least 6 innings. What happened to the days when Nolan Ryan or Mike Scott would pitch all 9 innings and then start again 3 days later?

[PiratesWS1979]

Keep the replay but stop the open communication to your own replay booth. If the managers, coaches and players on the field can't decide to ask for a replay...then you don't need a replay.

[OsFan]

Originally Posted by Section103

Each team gets 3 pitchers per 9 innings. 1 additional pitcher for 2 extra innings.

This is an interesting idea.

[OsFan]

My biggest problem with the game unfortunately is I assume any player having a stand out year is taking ped's. It sucks and hopefully over time if MLB stays on top of it, I'll begin to get over that.

[Butch7999]

Did anyone watch the "special limited commercial interruption" telecast of that Colorado-at-St Louis game a week or so ago?
Commercial breaks were linited to one minute between each half-inning. It actually didn't shorten gametime very much,
but oh, how much more satisfying was the pace and flow. Not exactly as much of an improvement as commercial-break-free
Olympic hockey, but a big improvement.
Seriously, have a few more pitching changes really added an hour or more to the length of a nine-inning game of years ago?
Prior to this 21st-century, did batters never step out to "adjust" themselves, did pitchers never step off the mound, did catchers
and managers never visit the mound for a chat?
We're pretty sure they've always done all those things, and the Roger Angell trope of the "ineluctible pastoral timelessness
of baseball" seemed to be a widely-shared ideal that would have repudiated the idea of putting a clock near the field
other than to tell us what time it was outside.
Is it just remotely possible that three-minute-plus commercial breaks every half-inning might be adding fifty minutes or more
to the time it takes to complete nine innings?

[packs]

Contracts will now come with mutually agreed upon minimum figures. If a player fails to reach the minimum figures outlined in the contract, the team is able to either restructure the contract for the remaining time, or cut said player without financial penalty.

This way we'll get rid of bums like Arod, Carl Crawford, Jacoby Ellsbury, etc. who are pariahs and impossible to trade.

[steve B]

Originally Posted by bnorth

This one is easy for me. All stadiums are to be indoor, no more of this playing baseball outside BS.

I live out in the middle of nowhere. I used to make the 600 mile round trip several times a year to go to games in Minneapolis. Yes the Twins suck but it is by far the closest place to watch games. When they built that insanely stupid outside stadium I quit watching and going to games.

This year is the first time I have enjoyed watching games again so I figured I would go see the Yankees play the Twins recently. It took about 10 minutes to remember why I hated outside stadiums. It was hot, humid and miserable out. The Dome was old but there was going to be a game and it was going to be 70 degrees and beautiful. I am sure many players would agree with me.

Ok, you go to games in the new "wussy fans and teams" league, and I'll keep going to Fenway in the also new "weather? who cares" league. OUR world series will be against the winner of the "it's a nice day to play two" league hopefully against Chicago.

We might even move our league to play in months with snow or sleet and see if we can't give the NFL some competition for winter TV money.


Steve B

[Troy Kirk]

Make all outfield fences 600 feet from home plate. That would make all hitters earn their hits. You'd see some amazing catches too. For those that have to see home runs go over fences, create a parallel home run derby league.

[Bill77]

Make the players run in all of their extra protection gear. If you can't run in it don't wear it.

[EvilKing00]

Get rid of the new colision at home plate rule and go back to what it was.

Get rid of interleague play. Watching mets vs seattle isnt just boarimg but it means nothing.

Go back to how the ball was made a few years ago. This new ball isnt good for anyone. Having everyone hitting 20 or more hr is silly.

The 10day dl is dumb, 14 day dl is better. Makes a team think more before putting a player on it

If interleague is kept- i like what another poster said about dh. Having a dh in nl parks and pitchers hit in al ones.

All star game voting must change. Me being able to vote 30x for a player on line for each ip address i have is crazy.