Posted by d_rock97 on 9/12/2022 2:31:00 PM (view original):
How deep did the starters go? The whole point of pitchers taking their time is so they can catch their breath, and throw 100 high effort pitches. Put in a 15 second pitch clock and you’ll be lucky if they’re effective after 70. Boomers already hate starters today cuz they can barely go 6 innings, and now it’s gonna be 5.

It remains to be seen. It will be a very interesting thing to watch.
It could keep a pitcher in his groove.
And the hitter less time to get prepared.

Posted by chargingryno on 9/11/2022 10:52:00 AM (view original):
I personally hate the shift, so selfishly am glad it's gone. I don't know if banning it is the best thing for the sport though. Nothing is more infuriating to me as a former player to see a ball RIPPED up the middle..... only to be routinely fielded by the 3RD BASEMAN for an easy out. Drives me crazy.

The other thing that drives me crazy is the ridiculous "catchers blocking the plate" rule. It's a horrible rule, it's horribly enforced, and ruins the game experience imo.

Bigger bases, don't think will have any impact. Limited pickups just further reduces the strategy of a pitcher and is dumb. Pitch clock is dumb. This isn't basketball.

I disagree that sports have to evolve or change. Baseball just has the worst marketing team in pro sports and makes excuses instead of talking about the excitement of the games. Old, boring, tired announcers are another part of the problem. Maybe we should ban them instead.

K. I've finished my coffee - rant over

This. 100%. Amen and amen. Gospel according to Chargingryno.

Not sure I've ever agreed mor with anything posted here.

Ok, I will add one thing. While I hate the shift, I'm not sure the changed rule in today's MLB is good because its clear intent is to further encourage the TTO approach, which I hate slightly more than the shift.

Posted by d_rock97 on 9/12/2022 3:36:00 PM (view original):

Posted by chargingryno on 9/11/2022 10:52:00 AM (view original):
I personally hate the shift, so selfishly am glad it's gone. I don't know if banning it is the best thing for the sport though. Nothing is more infuriating to me as a former player to see a ball RIPPED up the middle..... only to be routinely fielded by the 3RD BASEMAN for an easy out. Drives me crazy.

The other thing that drives me crazy is the ridiculous "catchers blocking the plate" rule. It's a horrible rule, it's horribly enforced, and ruins the game experience imo.

Bigger bases, don't think will have any impact. Limited pickups just further reduces the strategy of a pitcher and is dumb. Pitch clock is dumb. This isn't basketball.

I disagree that sports have to evolve or change. Baseball just has the worst marketing team in pro sports and makes excuses instead of talking about the excitement of the games. Old, boring, tired announcers are another part of the problem. Maybe we should ban them instead.

K. I've finished my coffee - rant over

The new rule will prevent 2Bs from being in shallow RF, but it seems the ball ripped up the middle will still be a routine groundout. Infielder just has to be on one side of the second base bag and their feet in the dirt. SS will likely play rover, with the 3B a little left of the SS position

Banning the shift will probably help some LH batters for the obvious reasons. An earlier proposal calling for dead zone on either side 2nd base could have been quite impactful.

Posted by d_rock97 on 9/12/2022 2:31:00 PM (view original):
How deep did the starters go? The whole point of pitchers taking their time is so they can catch their breath, and throw 100 high effort pitches. Put in a 15 second pitch clock and you’ll be lucky if they’re effective after 70. Boomers already hate starters today cuz they can barely go 6 innings, and now it’s gonna be 5.

The starters each went about 5 innings, which I doubt has anything to do with a pitch clock but more to do with the sabermetric-driven idea about not facing batters a third time through the order, and about limiting starting pitchers to save their arms, especially at the minor league level where they are so young, and teams don't want their prized prospects undergoing Tommy John surgery before they even get to the majors (sorry for the run-on sentence).

Don't get me wrong - I hate the way baseball teams are using their starting pitchers today, and good God, the playoff games where the starter only goes three innings before giving way to an endless procession of 98 mph relievers! But I'm not sure what rule change could alter the current reality. Force starters to stay in for 100 pitches? I grew up watching guys like Steve Carlton and Tom Seaver duel for 9 innings, but I'm not sure how we force teams to go back to that philosophy.

I understand being against a pitch clock in principle, but once it's become the norm and games speed up are people really going to pining for the days of human rain delays like Steve Trachsel? Pace of play has gotten slower and slower over the years, a big rule change to put a stop to the dawdling was overdue. Nothing makes me turn off a game I don't have a big rooting interest in quicker than a really slow pitcher.

That and hitters fixing their batting gloves after every pitch, even if they didn’t swing!

so if the IFs have to keep a foot in the dirt

whats that gonna do to bunt defenses

Posted by fatguyrd on 9/14/2022 1:35:00 PM (view original):
That and hitters fixing their batting gloves after every pitch, even if they didn’t swing!

Remember Mike Hargrove, The Human Rain Delay...

Gamesmanship....

https://youtu.be/8tGm_JajqLo

Classic matchup vs Mike Torrez

https://youtu.be/3a_408HLzAI

I remember Hargrove by name, but don’t remember seeing him much. I was actually thinking of a guy I love, other then the batting glove thing—-Bryce

I hate the shifts as well. It wasn't such a bad concept when it was rarely done, but it has taken away a lot of excitement from the game. Even on defense because the ball is being hit right to the fielder instead of the fielder making a great play to get the out. I remember being fascinated by the range that guys like Tony Fernandez, Ozzie Smith and Vizquel used to have. With the shift you don't really see that anymore.

The arguments for the shift is that hitters just need to hit the other way. But that's easier said than done, particularly in the days where pitchers are throwing 100 mph sinkers that run off hard. And I think there's more excitement to be had by hitting the ball harder rather than hitting it softer but positioning it away from the fielders.

belay that noise

drop the mound, deaden the ball

maybe all that launch angle rocket to russia stuff can go by the wayside

let's get some athletes back into the game

the way things are heading we are gonna wind up with a buncha sumo wrestlers at the plate