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

[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.

[triwak]

One small, but not insignificant rule change: All base runners score on a Ground Rule Double. I'm sick of the offense getting screwed, by having to send the runner originally on first base back to third!

[JollyElm]

For the love of freakin' God, when a pitched ball hits the ground on the way to the plate, leave it in the game. Throw it back to the pitcher and keep using it!!!! Do not immediately take the ball out of play!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It hasn't been cut in half. It's not dented. It doesn't suddenly have a killer virus on it. It simply has a speck of dirt on it. That's it. What the hell is wrong with the MLB????????????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Butch7999]

No domes. Open-air ballparks only.
No artificial turf. Real grass only.
No tediously long commercial breaks. One minute maximum between each half-inning except the 7th.
No Major League teams in Florida or Arizona. Those states are for spring training. Support your minor-league team.
No view-obscuring netting around the whole damn ballpark. Get off the cellphone and pay attention to the game.
No DHs. Pitchers learn to hit or get pulled for a PH. Nobody pitches more than three innings at time now anyways.
No extended warm-ups for relief pitchers. Three-pitch warm-up limit after entering game from bullpen.
No yard-wide strike zone. If it ain't over the plate it ain't a strike.
No pajama pants. Sanis and stirrups for everybody.
No gloves bigger than a bushel basket. Ten-inch limit on all gloves and mitts.
No Duck Dynasty beards, no billygoat beardlets, no Wall Street yuppie stubble. Moustaches and sideburns of any size or style okay.
No bat-flipping. Flip a bat after getting a hit and an opponent is allowed to throw a bat at you from ten feet away.
No sushi, champagne, kale, calamari, wine coolers, or any of that trendy crap at the concessions.
Hot dogs, burgers, pizza, beef on weck, nachos, popcorn, pretzels, beer, and cola only, all priced reasonably.

----------------------------------------

Upon further review (one day later):
Forgot to add three things to our original post -- "No regular-season interleague play," as many others have since said;
and "No extra charge for scorecard and pencil -- both are freebies with purchase of reasonably-priced game programme;"
and we left "Ice cream" off our list of of acceptable concession items, preferably the flavourless little styrofoam-pellet ice cream
served in those little plastic collectible souvenir batting helmets.

[Tabe]

Originally Posted by Butch7999

No view-obscuring netting around the whole damn ballpark. Get off the cellphone and pay attention to the game.

I'll never understand this line of reasoning. You ever heard anybody that sits behind home plate say "Man, I wish there was no net here because it just messes up the view"? Of course not. Because it doesn't. I watch 35 games a year from directly behind home and the net "isn't even there". No one even sees it 5 minutes after sitting down.

And the "get off the cellphone" thing? Seriously? As if no one ever got hit by a line drive before cellphones?

We see coaches get hit by line drives on occasion. We see players in the dugouts get hit on occasion. We see pitchers - who are farther away than some fans - hit all the time. It's simply not realistic, nor reasonable, to expect every single fan to have a laser-like focus for every single pitch of a 3-1/2 hour game so that they might see a baseball rocketing toward them at 110mph AND have time to process that and react to it.

Put me in the "netting all the way to the foul poles" crowd. It will have literally zero impact on fan enjoyment and may actually increase it. Believe me, it's nice to not worry that turning your head for half a second could cost you your life.

And if you think we shouldn't have netting because it impacts the view, then remove it behind home plate, too.

[56Horsehide]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

For the love of freakin' God, when a pitched ball hits the ground on the way to the plate, leave it in the game. Throw it back to the pitcher and keep using it!!!! Do not immediately take the ball out of play!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It hasn't been cut in half. It's not dented. It doesn't suddenly have a killer virus on it. It simply has a speck of dirt on it. That's it. What the hell is wrong with the MLB????????????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!

I agree with this 100%. How much time is being spent (a) throwing balls to the dugouts (rather than back to the pitcher); (b) the umpire signaling for more baseballs; (c) the bat boy running out to the umpire; (d) the umpire giving the ball to the catcher to throw out to the pitcher; (e) pitcher rubs the new ball; etc. When I was a kid we used the same ball for multiple seasons. Does anyone know how many baseballs are used by all 30 teams in a single season?

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by 56Horsehide

Does anyone know how many baseballs are used by all 30 teams in a single season?

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

[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.

[barrysloate]

Get rid of all the noise added to entertain the fans. Used to be you could go to a game with a friend and talk baseball while you watched. Last time I went to Yankee Stadium it was so loud I couldn't hear my friend at all, and at some point just gave up trying to have a conversation.

If the powers that be think that the game itself isn't interesting enough, then something is clearly wrong.

[BengoughingForAwhile]

During all even numbered innings batters will run the bases in a clockwise direction, thus negating the current advantage that left handed hitters have being closer to first base.

[Jason Carota]

- Make interleague games Spring Training only.
- Eliminate lefty/righty specialists that come in to face one batter.
- ENFORCE the rule that keeps batters in the box
- No more "alternate jerseys." Home whites, road grays only.

[Hot Springs Bathers]

I think Butch and Barry hit on all the best points! I would also drop inter-league play, there is just not as much excitement heading into the World Series.

I also love college football but the electronic noise at games drives me crazy! The SEC even has a rule that now prohibits or limits the visiting school from bringing their bands!!! Of course I would also lobby for an addition to football rosters in the programs where they add the players arrest record.

Back to baseball I would also ban anyone from collecting cards or memorabilia that do not know the history of the game or simply collect for investment. Just my two cents.

Now I have to finish getting ready to head to Little Rock for today's SABR meeting.

[Tom S.]

Originally Posted by barrysloate

Get rid of all the noise added to entertain the fans. Used to be you could go to a game with a friend and talk baseball while you watched. Last time I went to Yankee Stadium it was so loud I couldn't hear my friend at all, and at some point just gave up trying to have a conversation.

If the powers that be think that the game itself isn't interesting enough, then something is clearly wrong.

+1 At least MLB hasn't gone as far as the NBA with allowing artificial noise to be pumped in during play...yet.

[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.