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

[frankbmd]

Originally Posted by Tabe

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.

Originally Posted by Tabe

How would I change baseball if I were named all-powerful commissioner?

1) First thing I'd do? Give Armando Galarraga his perfect game. Unbelievable that this hasn't been corrected already.

2) Netting all the way to the foul poles (see above).

3) Visits to the mound by the catcher or other players count as an official visit. Pitcher must face at least 2 hitters (including current batter) after an official visit.

4) 4 tosses to 1st base per runner. After that, a throw over gets the runner awarded second base.

5) Pitchers get X number of seconds to enter a game, warm up, and throw their first pitch. Maybe 60. No strict warmup pitch limit. So guys who want more pitches can hustle to the mound faster.

6) Pitching changes from the dugout - no visits.

7) After the previous hitter is retired, the next hitter has 10 seconds to be in the box ready to hit. This is one of the biggest changes over the last several decades. Used to be guys were sitting there waiting to hit while the infield went "around the horn" after a groundout. Now there's a big delay all the time.

8) All pitchers must face at least 2 hitters when brought into the game. I'm flexible on this - could be 3 hitters or some other number.

9) Pitch clock displayed in the ballpark and strictly enforced. First couple times, a ball/strike is awarded. 3rd time, player is ejected.

10) 20-game suspensions for any player leaving his position during a brawl between two other players. 50 games for any player leaving the dugout/bullpen/on-deck. $2m fine for a team, per player, for anybody suspended under these rules.

11) Get rid of the DH.

12) If a batter swings and misses and loses control of his bat, he's automatically out.

13) Get rid of walk-up music for hitters and pitchers.

14) Go back to 2 divisions and ditch the wild card and 1-game play-in.

15) 150-game season.

That's a start.

Just scratching the surface, eh?, Chris

[Al C.risafulli]

Man, I do love baseball. I have no problem with most of the developments in the game over the years. I think 75 million tickets sold are a pretty good indication that MLB is doing all right.

That said, I'd be happy to see the following:

-Eliminate instant replay
-Bring back intentional walks
-Bring back the neighborhood play
-Bring back blocking home plate
-Stop trying to shorten the game. It has no clock, it's beautiful.
-Anyone who discusses placing an automatic baserunner on second to begin each inning after the 9th will be automatically fired
-More doubleheaders in exchange for adding one roster spot
-Get rid of single-game playoffs except in the event of a tie in the standings
-Kids get to run the bases at the end of each game
-Players sign autographs for kids before batting practice

That's about all I'd change. Nothing fundamental to the game.

-Al

[MooseDog]

Ok, I made it through all nine pages and no one brought this up. One of the things I think we all love in baseball is the cozy new stadiums. A big factor to long games could be due to the tiny foul territory in the new stadiums.

I grew up with the 1970s Oakland A's. They had starting pitchers who worked very fast (check out a Catfish Hunter or Vida Blue video some time...about 5 seconds between pitches), threw strikes, and won a lot of 2-1 and 3-1 games, and though my memory is foggy after all these years, games rarely went over 3 hours.

I think one of the big factors is that the foul territory at the O-co is HUGE. Just about any foul pop up is going to be an out.

One suggestion, empower an off-field umpire to make and correct calls via a phone/radio in the ear of the home plate umpire...let's get rid of the conference around the video monitor.

[drmondobueno]

Forget the regular season. Who watches or can afford to go to the ballpark these days. Go straight to the playoffs.

Shoud be able to get three or four seasons done in a calendar year.

And change ESPN's name to the ESPNBA.

Wutup, Frank?

[Butch7999]

We didn't say "no netting anywhere in the ballpark." Obviously it's a must behind the plate and
for some distance up the baselines.
We said "no netting all around the ballpark" -- granted, we should've worded that "no netting
beyond the infield," where it's a needless distraction and every bit as headache-inducing as Ben suggested.

Frank, when you recommended the elimination of "concrete donuts," did you mean stale confections
or 1970s stadia?

[Tabe]

Originally Posted by Butch7999

We didn't say "no netting anywhere in the ballpark." Obviously it's a must behind the plate and
for some distance up the baselines.
We said "no netting all around the ballpark" -- granted, we should've worded that "no netting
beyond the infield," where it's a needless distraction and every bit as headache-inducing as Ben suggested.

My point was that netting is not the visual distraction its detractors claim. People sit behind home plate all the time with no issues. I'll take you at your word that you find netting headache-inducing but know that you're in a really, really, really small minority that have that reaction.

And you just said nothing beyond the infield, meaning you'd be amenable to have all the way to the end of the infield - a significant increase over what we currently have. I'd take that as a first step.

Was at a game tonight and watched a guy foul a rocket into the stands. It hit an empty seat but there would have been just about zero chance for a fan to move out of the way had somebody been sitting in that particular seat. It's nonsense to think that a fan getting hit by a foul ball is 100% the fan's fault 100% of the time. So put up a net. People will get used to it in no time.

[timzcardz]

I understand the whole "prime time" thing for advertising dollars during the Playoffs/WS and including the prime time on both coasts, but for goodness sake, and the future of the game's fan base, at least play the weekend games during the afternoon/early evening when young kids can watch them and gain an appreciation as they grow up.

In all honesty, when the games don't start until 8-8:30 east coast time, it's even too late for me when I have to go to work the next morning.

[obcbobd]

Originally Posted by timzcardz

I understand the whole "prime time" thing for advertising dollars during the Playoffs/WS and including the prime time on both coasts, but for goodness sake, and the future of the game's fan base, at least play the weekend games during the afternoon/early evening when young kids can watch them and gain an appreciation as they grow up.

In all honesty, when the games don't start until 8-8:30 east coast time, it's even too late for me when I have to go to work the next morning.

Amen! And for commercials set for 11pm EST and later, the ratings may be higher but 1/2 of us on the east coast are sleeping.

[Tabe]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

Just scratching the surface, eh?, Chris

Yeah, something like that