MLB sent out lists of possible changes

[Pugz]

New commissioner Rob Manfred has not only publicly endorsed radical changes to the game during his first days on the job - he's apparently presented the players with several ideas to consider as well.

Major League Baseball recently sent the union a list of potential changes to the game that included lowering the mound and adjusting the strike zone, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

Rosenthal described the presentation as a "package of data," and noted that no formal talks or negotiations have taken place. A source told FOX Sports that none of the ideas have progressed to an official proposal.

The list reportedly included information on lowering the mound, moving in the fences at every park, wrapping the ball tighter to make it travel further, adjusting the strike, and adopting the designated hitter in the National League.

Manfred, who has made no secret in his desire to speed up the game and improve offense, has already discussed a possible ban on shifts and use of a pitch clock.

In an interview with the New York Times on Sunday, Manfred downplayed the possibility of expanding the use of a DH.

"I can't see the American League clubs giving it up, and right now, given the composition of our National League owners, I don't see them buying into it," he said. "So I think were staying where we are."

 

[RipCity32]

Smh

 

[Giantmetfan07]

Didn't take long for him to become the worst Commissioner ever. 

 

[Pugz]

a pitch clock lol

 

[Giantmetfan07]

I hate the idea of a pitch clock. However I would be on board with a maximum times a batter can step out of the box in an at bat. 

 

[elcheato]

Didn't take long for him to become the worst Commissioner ever. 

What? I think it's actually good that a commissioner isn't falling in line with tradition for no reason. Some of the ideas may seem like too much, but you have to start somewhere to get change. 
 
But it does seem a bit ironic that he's trying to improve offense and speed up the game. Better offense would naturally make games longer. 
 
What's the issue with a pitch clock when basketball has a shot clock and football has a play clock? 

 

[Pugz]

im all for a count on how many times a better can step out but you rush a pitcher and youre rushing potential pick offs. i don't like how they still pitch four times when they're gonna walk out. just award the base.

 

[elcheato]

Mark Buehrle throws a pitch in a shade under 16 seconds immediately after he receives it. 20 seconds isn't even asking that much. 

 

[Giantmetfan07]

Basketball & Football need a shotclock because there is an actual game clock. MLB doesn't have a game clock. 
 
I'm against the block because the pace of the game has never bothered me. I'd rather not see pitchers feel rushed up there on the mound. For years we had an offensive explosion (even after Steroid era) and nobody ever complained "how can we fix this to make it more balanced". Now you have two years of pitching dominance and the new commissioner wants to change everything. 
 
I just don't like most of the ideas. I'm not crazy against a shotclock. It's not necessary in my opinion, but if the general consensus is the game needs to move faster then fine. As for almost all the other ideas, they're unnecessary. Wrapping the baseball tighter? Banning shifts? Moving in the fences at EVERY park (as if that's the league's right, which it's not). How would you adjust the strike zone when each umpire has a tighter or wider (uhuh) strike zone? Most of these ideas are idiotic and I'm not even sure if he put much thought in to how to enact these ideas. That's why he already appears to be a bad commissioner. 
 
Teach batters how to 1) hit where the defenders aren't, 2) better recognize pitches when it leaves the pitchers hand, 3) not swing at everything. That will fix offensive production. 

 

[Giantmetfan07]

Though I am curious what the average pitch time is in the league. Someone like fangraphs must have a statistic like that. If the average is around or under 25 seconds then it's not necessary. If there's a study that shows it's like 32 seconds or something then OK maybe we need it. 

 

[elcheato]

You're not going to see hitting catch up, anytime soon, or ever purely based on the emphasis on power and elite pitching in bullpens, advanced scouting that leads to the shifts, among other factors. Pitchers have much more control over situation than hitters, and these new trends are going to make it hard for hitting to catch up anytime soon on it's own. 
 
I don't agree with eliminating shifts and the other ideas, but again, if a new guy comes in to a sport ran and beloved by dinosaurs and advocates slight changes, nothing will get changed. These won't happen, but he has to start drastically so a middle ground or compromise can occur. 

 

[Giantmetfan07]

But again everyone is jumping to conclusions that we need to make drastic overhauls to help hitters when it's only been a couple of years where pitching has dominated. There are always trends where one side is stronger than the other. 
 
And why do we need to make changes to hitting? Ratings? I hate that. I'd rather watch pitchers make hitters look like fools. But hey, that's just me. 

 

[Giantmetfan07]

He also put Fred Wilpon in charge of the Finance Committee so that doesn't help make him look smart. 

 

[Giantmetfan07]

Although you're probably right that all of this advanced scouting & statistical analysis we have gives a much stronger edge to pitching & defense. 

 

[elcheato]

If you could clone yourself a million times your personal preference would hold more weight, but the fact of the matter is ratings are low and decreasing, and attendance is slightly decreasing, but mostly flat. 

 

[Giantmetfan07]

if I could do that... that would be awesome. 
 
But you're right about the ratings. They said last week "As bad as the pro bowl is, more people will watch it than the World Series". And that's pretty pathetic. 

 

[snipezo]

What? I think it's actually good that a commissioner isn't falling in line with tradition for no reason. Some of the ideas may seem like too much, but you have to start somewhere to get change. 
 
But it does seem a bit ironic that he's trying to improve offense and speed up the game. Better offense would naturally make games longer.
 
What's the issue with a pitch clock when basketball has a shot clock and football has a play clock? 

Probably because casual fans don't wanna see low scoring games.

 

[Big Bid'Ness]

There will be some high ass E.R.A's