Pace of Play and the Twins

I'm old school and something needs to be done re: pace/time of the games. Way tooooo slooow. I lose interest and I understand all the arguments for letting it be as is, but, there is no reason that a batter steps out as much as they do to adjust equipment or the pitchers hem and haw as much as they do.

I'd rather see a no step out rule for batters and the pitcher must pitch when umpire is ready. Let the umpire count count "1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi etc." until he gets to "5 Mississippi" and call a ball.

Also stop all the visits to the mounds by limiting them to once per pitcher. They can talk in the dugout between innings

I also like Jim Kaat's take on this:

http://jimkaat.mlblogs.com/2015/01/25/odds-and-ends/

Something has to change. Very hard to watch an entire game, especially for kids. Pitch clock seems to make the most sense. An at bat is an event in a game, not a pitch. All you gotta do is watch a big game on Fox. Every pitch is treated like an event. They show you 5 or 6 different shots of fans, managers, pitchers, hitters, back to fans. Not blaming Fox, but they shouldn't have the time to do all this stuff between pitches!

Another way I look at this -- if a football team can run a play (with no huddles) in a matter of seconds then a pitcher and catcher should be able to do it. Hitters same thing.

I've watching baseball and listening on the radio for 40 years. This slowness has no purpose. It's actually kind of odd. Worst thing about baseball in my humble opinion.  

MLB needs to do away with the manager's challenge. It's not the replay process so much as the manager's stroll out on to the field to stall for time while the dugout reviews the video. Put in place an extra "video" umpire who signals the field crew that a play should be reviewed and take the managers out of the equation.

Also on the subject of managers strolling out to the field, is it really necessary to do so for every pitching change?

MLB needs to do away with the manager's challenge. It's not the replay process so much as the manager's stroll out on to the field to stall for time while the dugout reviews the video. Put in place an extra "video" umpire who signals the field crew that a play should be reviewed and take the managers out of the equation.

 

Also on the subject of managers strolling out to the field, is it really necessary to do so for every pitching change?

I honestly don't know why people are so worried about game time. 

MLB needs to do away with the manager's challenge. It's not the replay process so much as the manager's stroll out on to the field to stall for time while the dugout reviews the video. Put in place an extra "video" umpire who signals the field crew that a play should be reviewed and take the managers out of the equation.

 

Also on the subject of managers strolling out to the field, is it really necessary to do so for every pitching change?

At TwinsFest, Terry Ryan said this season, managers will issue challenges from the top step of the dugout. That should at least do away with the long meander to buy time.

I honestly don't know why people are so worried about game time. 

Games have gotten longer by quite a bit.It takes a long time, especially if you go to the game. I think that's why.

Games have gotten longer by quite a bit.It takes a long time, especially if you go to the game. I think that's why.

yeah, I read the other posts, and I've read a lot of things concerning the length of game and how that extra 15, 20 minutes is such a problem and how the new Commish wants to shorten it.

My point was, I have no issues with the game being longer.  If I'm at a game, I ESPECIALLY like that the game takes longer. I enjoy the experience.  But I'm not part of the ADD crowd or people who need to rush through things to get to other things. I can just sit back, relax, and take it all in.  I hate two hour baseball games though, especially if I paid to go.

Certainly, whatever else gets done, this idea that a manager can walk out on the field and stand around until he gets a signal from the bench as to the validity of his challenge -- that's just idiotic and contrary to the notion of being a sporting event.

Either a manager challenges a call or he doesn't.  He shouldn't get confirmation ahead of time from a camera angle.  If the umpires have to call it in real time, then make the managers do the same.  It just feels stupid to watch a manager scratch at the dirt and wait for the advantage of access to a camera.  How does that help the sport?

Certainly, whatever else gets done, this idea that a manager can walk out on the field and stand around until he gets a signal from the bench as to the validity of his challenge -- that's just idiotic and contrary to the notion of being a sporting event.

 

Either a manager challenges a call or he doesn't.  He shouldn't get confirmation ahead of time from a camera angle.  If the umpires have to call it in real time, then make the managers do the same.  It just feels stupid to watch a manager scratch at the dirt and wait for the advantage of access to a camera.  How does that help the sport?

I agree with this 100%.

I don't know if we need to speed up play as much as eliminate useless dead time. My 2 biggest annoyances: 1) Batters should not get to step out of the box and re-adjust after every pitch. 2) pitching changes - why should relievers get 8-10 warm up pitches? Maximum of 2 or none would be fine with me. Does a pinch-hitter get some warm-up batting practice? I don't think we should ever have a clock in baseball although I can see it as a trial in minors for a year to get a behavior change.

yeah, I read the other posts, and I've read a lot of things concerning the length of game and how that extra 15, 20 minutes is such a problem and how the new Commish wants to shorten it.

 

My point was, I have no issues with the game being longer.  If I'm at a game, I ESPECIALLY like that the game takes longer. I enjoy the experience.  But I'm not part of the ADD crowd or people who need to rush through things to get to other things. I can just sit back, relax, and take it all in.  I hate two hour baseball games though, especially if I paid to go.

In that case, you're not the type of fan that MLB is most concerned about. You'll probably watch regardless of how long the game goes.

This matter is more about new fans... kids who get bored watching a baseball game, or parents who decide not to take their kids to a weekday evening game because it very well might go past 11:00 p.m. and the kids need to be up for school in the morning.

Here's a question. If you deduct the extra commercial time,both between innings and pitching changes, and remove the 7th inning patriotic salute to America from the current length of games, what do we end up with? (Please don't tell me we should have time for the salute, I know that, this is only about the math). I am not sure when the inning breaks time was increased and to what level?

For the record, I am an "old schooler" or at least old something. And I do find the games too lengthly. TIVO solves some of the problem at home, but complicates participating in the TD game threads.

For 100 years warm up pitches, mound visits, and pick off attempts were not a problem. Now all of the sudden they are? This is a problem of MLBs making by trying to squeeze every lost dollar out of advertising by lengthening breaks for commercials and by adding between inning pomp and circumstance. Now they are trying to fix something they broke by changing the way the game is played so they can keep their dollars. 

If you have to do it by not shortening inning breaks, fine. I'd like to see how a pitch clock works with runners on base because I don't think it will. If a pitcher takes too long automatic ball. If a batter takes too long to get in the box, automatic strike. It shouldn't have to be that way but I guess it is. I think it will take out a lot of interplay between the pitcher, batter, and catcher that has always been there since forever without hampering pace.

This should be as easy as umpires controlling the game, keeping the pace moving and Joe Torre controlling his umpires. Organizations and managers may have to deal with player entitlement to do whatever the hell they want but umpires certainly do not. Sure Angel Hernandes will push the boundaries of what is reasonable but players and managers to that too. Just look at how long a replay takes. It's not the umpires who hold that process up. I think ultimately if umpires could stick to their guns and a slow pace starts costing balls and strikes and outs the players will get on board real fast.

The specialization of bullpens combined with the starter's pitch count means more pitching changes than ever.

And every time, the manager jogs out to the mound, taps his arm, gives the outgoing pitcher a pep talk and pats him on the behind, then holds an inexplicable pow-wow with the infielders while the reliever jogs in. Then the reliever throws a few warm-up tosses before play begins again.

Baseball made it 100 years without the 7th inning salute and no one questioned the sport's integrity and/or patriotism.

 

It's time for the salute to go away and make baseball games about baseball, not faux patriotism.

The problem is that it is always harder to take something out than add it.  But I agree.  Plus we might eventually come to enjoy "God Bless America" again (in other contexts.)

BTW. what do they do in Toronto?

Baseball made it 100 years without the 7th inning salute and no one questioned the sport's integrity and/or patriotism.

 

It's time for the salute to go away and make baseball games about baseball, not faux patriotism.

But we all like patriotism, faux or not. And I'm always sincere, even when I have to fake it.