If I recall correctly,Theo Epstein left the Cubs last year; and joined the commissioner s office.He also proclaimed that analytics have gone too far.
If the current commish would listen to him,I bet h es got good id eas

The game will do what it always does and adjust. There’s always eras of pitching dominance and hitting dominance. One thing that hasn’t helped other than rising velocities is that fastball usage has been steadily declining since 2015. Breaking balls and offspeed pitches can and will be used in any count at any time.

Soon the next generation that grew up in the minor leagues facing 100 MPH pitches their entire minor league careers and sharp breaking balls in the dirt will arrive and offenses will go back to normal.

No need for rules changes, or pushing fences back (however that’d be a good strat for fielding a specific contrarian type of team, similar to that of those good Royals teams).

Although I do agree with d_rock on some points, I'm afraid TV has a huge say in what happens. As long as MLB has this non-fan of the game as commish (or at least his advisors), the baseball most of us loved won't be seen again. Just an old guy's opinion...hope I'm wrong.

EDIT: Young people have grown up watching this version of the game and (I guess) enjoy it. Guys like me and many others that have been fans for decades are in the wrong demographic. Our thoughts and wishes don't count for much in most any situation. So who knows how the game will evolve? I miss watching baseball but very rarely tune in.

Don't get me started on how much it costs to attend...

06gsp said "I don't see how you can make the pitchers worse"

lower the mound: batting averages go up and launch angles go down

fewer home runs, more action on the base paths

Make the ball bigger!

Posted by bagchucker on 5/24/2021 8:40:00 AM (view original):
06gsp said "I don't see how you can make the pitchers worse"

lower the mound: batting averages go up and launch angles go down

fewer home runs, more action on the base paths

I agree with bagchucker. Just in case you all needed more signs of the end of world being near...

seems cracking down on outright cheating would help balance things out of a bit

https://www.si.com/mlb/2021/06/04/sticky-stuff-is-the-new-steroids-daily-cover

“I’m tired of hearing people say that players only want to hit home runs,” says Rockies rightfielder Charlie Blackmon. “That’s not why people are striking out. They’re striking out because guys are throwing 97 mile-an-hour super sinkers, or balls that just go straight up with all this sticky stuff and the new-baseball spin rate. That’s why guys are striking out, because it’s really hard not to strike out.”

“There’s some [pitchers] where, if you swing where your eyes tell you, you won’t hit the ball, even if you’re on time,” Blackmon says. “I have to go out there and if my eyes tell me it’s in one place, I have to swing to a different place. Which is hard to do. It’s hard to swing and try and miss the ball. But there’s some guys where you have to do it, because their ball and the spin rate or whatever is defying every pitch that you’ve seen come in over the course of your career. … I basically have to not trust my eyes that the pitch is going to finish where I think it’s going to finish and swing in a different place, because the ball is doing something it has no business doing.”

possibly true, but also definitely self-serving, so i have to take it with a grain

is it possible a clubhouse divide is in the offing

hitters vs pitchers

an end to the keep-it-in-the-clubhouse mentality

j'accuse!

I think moving fences back would be an easy and impactful starting point. Less incentive for hitters to swing for the fences, and more area in play for fielders to cover. You’d see more hits, and hopefully hitters would start emphasizing contact and putting balls in play again.

Pitching has definitely taken huge steps forward, but hitters’ stubborn refusal to adjust/adapt is equally part of the problem.

Posted by farleyfustle on 5/24/2021 12:52:00 AM (view original):
If I recall correctly,Theo Epstein left the Cubs last year; and joined the commissioner s office.He also proclaimed that analytics have gone too far.
If the current commish would listen to him,I bet h es got good id eas

Manfred is the worst commissioner this sport has had. He doesn’t care about the game; he just cares about making a name for himself. From the day he arrived, he’s been obsessed with putting his stamp on the game, regardless of what crazy idea it takes to do that.

Additionally, one of baseball’s (and other pro sports to a lesser extent) biggest problems is alienating existing fans to attract new ones, which I’ll never understand. A) What’s the point in losing fans to gain fans? B) if you have to resort to gimmicks and rule changes to entice new “fans”, then you’ll always need some new thing to keep their attention/fandom. Sports should be focusing on existing fans first.

Posted by Mwett on 5/23/2021 2:30:00 AM (view original):

Posted by bagchucker on 5/23/2021 1:15:00 AM (view original):
400 500 400 would be the end of thunderdome

and pudgy softball looking guys

geez that would be terrible

having athletes back in the game

Yep, Tatis Betts Acuna Soto lugging around those beer bellys looks horrible. Their merch flying off the racks and fans flocking to the stadium now that they finally can must mean the game is in its most dire straits ever.

Everybody relax. The game is fine. I too have preferences for and against some of what's going on, but every generation of change has had their version of temporary wah as well, and, if MLB truly is your favorite sport, each adaptation has been fine. Some 200-year old somewhere must still be steamed that 9 balls doesn't equal a walk.

Luv it unconditionally, perfect imperfections and all. If that's not where you're at, that's fine too. I no longer plan half the year of Sunday's around all day and nite NFL, not since you can't breath on the QB or break his receivers neck on a crossing pattern anymore. But I still check in occasionally enough without trying to convince everyone else how broken it is. Check the room, know your audience. You won't be missed. But it'll probly look better if you silently slip into women's college lacrosse or cornhole. Those rooms are 3 doors down.

Incoherent in parts, with a very strange mix of bizarre and condescending for the rest.

Posted by Mwett on 5/23/2021 2:29:00 PM (view original):
Yeah. That. Or . . . Since 2017 which doesn't include a .299 BA, which CA has the best AL combo of playing time, run production, OPS, WAR, and multiple position awards all while slotted low in the batting order ? Wait !! . . here it is ! Not bad for someone who sucks.

Am I ok with the whiffs or declining defense ? Nope. Can we agree that overall current CA is going thru an era of funk and scale back on the convenient cherry picking that tries to paint MLB as the red-headed stepchild of yesteryear ? I'd hope so.

My dad told me and fantasy acquaintances at a game 25 years ago that that day's version of fake fan with spreadsheet in tow would kill the game. Not everyone takes to advancements. My mom died petrified of this new thing called the internet and refused to jump onto email or attachments to more easily enjoy grandkids. Not everyone is into spin rate. I get it, but in general my dad was wrong, as were dads before and after him with there version of wah. Is it different ? Sure. But it was different yesterday and last year and 100 years ago also. Do you have to like it ? Would I get a kick out of Bob Gibson stuffing the batting helmet ear hole of today's kids antics ? HAHA !! But it is what it is and you can't steal my sunshine.

Same as the last one.

Even players are complaining that they don't want to watch the games. Too boring.

'No hitters' are becoming far too common.

Almost 39% of at bats end in the ball not being in play.

Ty Cobb would hate todays game. Not that what Ty Cobb thinks especially matters, but it is interesting to note what one of the original 5 Cooperstown inductees thinks of the game itself. He famously disliked the homerun, for example.

People say moving the mound back 1 - 2 feet is a drastic change. Have they not noticed that drastic change is happening to the game already? To compensate for those drastic changes, changes that have made the game far more of a slog for many fans, seems prudent more than anything else. Why protect something to the point of irrationality? Something that is just a game, and primarily exists for entertainment.

Doing a thing the same way simply because of tradition is the dumbest reason to do something. Or, one of the dumbest....

Should we not be trying to maximize the entertainment value? That doesn't mean an excess of gimmicks. It is a balancing act between excitement and rewarding skill. And still keeping the game recognizable, while grappling with the huge changes sabermetrics and modern training/coaching has brought to the game.