MLB rule changes: Why the shift rule is a horrible idea
By Bill Felber
Last week’s adoption by MLB of a rule severely limiting the ability of teams to use a shift is a bad idea founded on a flawed premise and is destined to fail in its stated premise of restoring ball-in-play action to the game.
The flaws in this rule change are so obvious that one is forced to conclude the game’s decision-making bodies are reacting solely to public pressure — which polling suggests is heavily in favor of shift bans — rather than to the obvious flaws in the plan that experts ought to be paid to notice.
The rule that goes into effect with the start of the 2023 season will require that all teams place two infielders on each side of second base, and that their feet be on the infield dirt when the pitch is thrown. That means no more third basemen or shortstops shifting into short right field to cut off sinking line drives or hot grounders and throwing the runner out at first.
The desire to find solutions that will make the game more attractive, especially to younger fans, is understandable. The average 2022 game is attracting fewer than 27,000 fans, off about five percent (1,500) from the last pre-pandemic season, 2019.
Since hitting a peak of 30,895 in 2012, MLB attendance is fallen virtually annually. The declines are not just limited to on-site activity. The 2022 All-Star Game drew a record low TV audience.
Since the steady drop in attendance coincides almost perfectly with the increased use of shifts, it’s understandable to see a cause-and-effect. But it’s nowhere near that simple. Nor is the cure nearly as simple as legislating the infield shift out of existence.