pfister1
2023-24 Iggy Winner ACC & OOC Record
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Pace Of Game Initiatives In AFL Test
New rules to be tested out in the Arizona Fall League after recommendations from MLB's pace of game committee:
• Batter's box rule: Hitter required to keep at least one foot in the batter's box throughout at-bat unless there is foul ball, wild pitch or passed ball -- or if a pitch forces him out or the umpire grants "time."
• No-pitch intentional walks
• 20-second rule: 20-second clock will be posted in each dugout, behind home plate and in outfield to prevent pitchers from taking too much time in games at Salt River Fields only.
• 2:05 inning-break clock: Maximum time allowed between innings, and batters must be in box at 1:45 mark or umpire can call automatic strike. If pitcher throws pitch after 2:05, umpire may call ball.
• 2:30 pitching-change-break clock: Maximum amount of time allowed for pitching change.
• Three "timeout" limit: Teams limited to three trips to the mound by managers, coaches and catchers during game, except pitching changes.
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It'll be interesting to see if these initiatives have much of an impact.
For example, the no pitch intentional walk rule does nothing for me. Doesn't seem like it would come up often enough to have an impact and the stuff that bothers me is more related to pace of the game where there is truly no action e.g. pitcher walking around the mound between pitches, hitters stepping out of the box to receive signs.
I'm not sure what the 20 second pitch clock is supposed to do, isn't there already a 12 second pitch rule that isn't really enforced?
Part of the problem with the game is that every move on the field is micro managed from the dugout. The game isn't just played by the players on the field. They are more like chess pieces being moved by the manager/coaches. The bench calls pitches, signs are given to the runners and hitter every pitch, defenses shift for every batter and sometimes may shift multiple times within an at bat dependent on particular pitches to batters. All of that takes time and tends to slow the game down.
The advent of the specialist has also slowed the game down. Whereas in the old days pitchers would commonly throw complete games, now it is unusual to see a game with less than 2 or 3 pitching changes. These pitching changes and the mound visits that lead to them definitely slow the game down.
I also think some of it is just that there is so much attention, money and thus pressure riding on the outcome of every game that every action becomes more deliberate. Pitchers frequently don't just "go right after" hitters, they nibble around the zone with hitters taking lots of pitches. I would be very interested to see a stat that shows the average number of pitches thrown to each batter over different time periods to see if it has gone up over time.
New rules to be tested out in the Arizona Fall League after recommendations from MLB's pace of game committee:
• Batter's box rule: Hitter required to keep at least one foot in the batter's box throughout at-bat unless there is foul ball, wild pitch or passed ball -- or if a pitch forces him out or the umpire grants "time."
• No-pitch intentional walks
• 20-second rule: 20-second clock will be posted in each dugout, behind home plate and in outfield to prevent pitchers from taking too much time in games at Salt River Fields only.
• 2:05 inning-break clock: Maximum time allowed between innings, and batters must be in box at 1:45 mark or umpire can call automatic strike. If pitcher throws pitch after 2:05, umpire may call ball.
• 2:30 pitching-change-break clock: Maximum amount of time allowed for pitching change.
• Three "timeout" limit: Teams limited to three trips to the mound by managers, coaches and catchers during game, except pitching changes.
******************************************************************
It'll be interesting to see if these initiatives have much of an impact.
For example, the no pitch intentional walk rule does nothing for me. Doesn't seem like it would come up often enough to have an impact and the stuff that bothers me is more related to pace of the game where there is truly no action e.g. pitcher walking around the mound between pitches, hitters stepping out of the box to receive signs.
I'm not sure what the 20 second pitch clock is supposed to do, isn't there already a 12 second pitch rule that isn't really enforced?
Part of the problem with the game is that every move on the field is micro managed from the dugout. The game isn't just played by the players on the field. They are more like chess pieces being moved by the manager/coaches. The bench calls pitches, signs are given to the runners and hitter every pitch, defenses shift for every batter and sometimes may shift multiple times within an at bat dependent on particular pitches to batters. All of that takes time and tends to slow the game down.
The advent of the specialist has also slowed the game down. Whereas in the old days pitchers would commonly throw complete games, now it is unusual to see a game with less than 2 or 3 pitching changes. These pitching changes and the mound visits that lead to them definitely slow the game down.
I also think some of it is just that there is so much attention, money and thus pressure riding on the outcome of every game that every action becomes more deliberate. Pitchers frequently don't just "go right after" hitters, they nibble around the zone with hitters taking lots of pitches. I would be very interested to see a stat that shows the average number of pitches thrown to each batter over different time periods to see if it has gone up over time.
