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MLB: Four Ideas To Actually Improve The Game

By Benno Martens

Oct 26, 2014; San Francisco, CA, USA; MLB newly elected commissioner Rob Manfred talks on a phone on the field before game five of the 2014 World Series between the San Francisco Giants and the Kansas City Royals at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 26, 2014; San Francisco, CA, USA; MLB newly elected commissioner Rob Manfred talks on a phone on the field before game five of the 2014 World Series between the San Francisco Giants and the Kansas City Royals at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports /
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Change #2: Don’t Limit Pitching Changes, Limit The Time They Take

Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /

This season, MLB instituted a clock for pitching coaches and managers making visits to the mound, after having tested the idea in the minor leagues. When a pitching coach or manager takes a trip to the mound to speak with their pitcher, they have just 30 seconds from the time they leave the dugout to do so, and a timer can be seen in each of the 30 big league ballparks.

There are several ways the same sort of idea could be applied to other facets of baseball that would cut down on the length of games. The minor leagues are currently employing a time limit on inning breaks, a pitching change timer, and a pitch clock, all of which provide incentives to teams to speed up the pace of play.

Going one step further, Neil Weinberg of FanGraphs and Beyond the Box Score had an interesting take on how mid-inning pitching changes can be sped up:

Except in the case of an injury that causes a pitcher to enter a game cold, limiting the number of warmup pitches would cut down on the time pitching changes take, which would appear preferable to restricting the changes and taking strategy out of a manager’s hands.

“Fundamentally, when you begin to restrict things, rather than being able to use your roster at your disposal, that begins to artificially control the game,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said. “I understand the need to keep the pace of the game going. Without knowing what options would exist and what are the alternatives being considered, that’s my first gut reaction.

“In the moment [as a manager], I’m not worried about the pace of the game. As a person who works in the game, sure, we’re always looking for ways to make it more attractive to fans, to grow our fan base, to attract young fans. We are all aware of that challenge. We’re all open to ways to grow that. But in the seventh inning in a bases-loaded situation, I’m not thinking about pace of games.”

Nor should a manager have to worry about it. As Brian Kenny wrote in his book Ahead of the Curve, the game is always on the line, and players and managers are paid an incredible amount of money to win those games, not be concerned with how long doing so takes.

Next: Challenge the challenge rule

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