MLB to change some rules for 2022
DENVER – Those seven-inning doubleheaders are going out the way of 10cent beer and Disco Demolition nights, unceremoniously disappearing from the baseball landscape.
The extra-inning rules, with a runner starting on second base in the 10th inning, may be out too – or at least modified.
There also could be a ban of those shifts that have helped suffocate offenses.
And, believe it or not, MLB and the players association aren't nearly at odds as much as publicly perceived, with optimism that the 26-year streak without a work stoppage will continue.
“We have a very professional working relationship with the MLBPA,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said Tuesday. “More generally, this whole relationship thing gets overplayed and misinterpreted. The fact that you have a period of time, which we admittedly had last spring, where we had serious disagreements which became public, I don't think that is an indicator of whether you're going to get a new agreement. …
“Our No. 1 priority is to get a new agreement without a work stoppage. Every single time that was our No. 1 priority. You know, it's worked out pretty good so far.”
Said Tony Clark, executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association: “There are going to be disagreements along the way; there were disagreements last year, which unfortunately played out publicly.”
This time any disagreements have stayed behind closed doors, with neither side threatening a work stoppage or insisting there's even a hard deadline of Dec. 1.
Yet the biggest news during the Q&A session Manfred and Clark had with the Baseball Writers' Association of America was that the rules implemented during the pandemic likely will be abolished before the 2022 season.
“These rules were adopted based on medical advice,” Manfred said. “Those are less likely they will become part of our permanent landscape. It was a COVID-related change. I don't think seven-inning doubleheaders are going to be part of our future going forward.”
Who knows, those drastic shifts could also be banned in the future, and they certainly will be discussed during the collective bargaining agreement talks.
“Let's just say you regulated the shift by requiring two infielders on each side of second base,” Manfred said. “What does that do? It makes the game look like what it looked like when I was 12 years old.
“It's not change. It's kind of restoration. That's why people are in favor of it. I'm hopeful that we will have productive conversations with the MLBPA about non-radical changes to the game that will restore it to being played in a way that is closer to what many of us enjoy historically.”
It's quite possible the game, no matter how it looks going forward, could be going on without a baseball team in Oakland, California. Manfred showed his strongest public support yet for the Athletics' potential plans to relocate to Las Vegas or elsewhere if they can't reach an agreement for a new ballpark.
“The Oakland process is at the end,” Manfred said. “(Owner) John Fisher and (president) Dave Kaval have devoted literally millions of dollars to the effort to get a ballpark proposal that can be supported the city of Oakland and Alameda County. That proposal is in front of the relevant government authorities. There are real crucial votes taking place over the next months, and that's going to determine the fate of baseball. …
“So we're going to know one way or another what's going to happen in Oakland in the next couple of months. If you can't get a ballpark, the relocation process, whether it's Las Vegas or a broader array of cities that are considered, will take on more pace.”
Las Vegas, which already took the NFL's Raiders out of Oakland, are trying to poach the Athletics, too.
“Las Vegas is a viable alternative for a major league club,” Manfred insists. “Thinking about this as a bluff is a mistake. This is the decision point for Oakland as to whether they want to have Major League Baseball going forward.”
While Manfred threw down the gauntlet on Oakland, he asserted during his 30-minute briefing that he's pleased with the direction of baseball's future, citing the 16 million fans attending games in the first half with an average attendance of 29,000 during the final weekend before the All-Star break, increase in TV ratings, the scouting combine and amateur draft being held one month apart, the incorporation of Negro League statistics and the celebration of their inaugural Lou Gehrig Day.
He just didn't want to touch how politics could impact future All-Star Game sites, with this year's game being moved from Atlanta to Denver in April because of voting right restrictions.
“I think the decision with respect to Atlanta was probably the hardest thing I've been asked to do so far,” Manfred said. “I'm kind of hoping it's going to be the hardest thing I get asked to do, period. Having said that, I'm not going to speculate who's going to pass a law and where we might take jewel events. It's hard enough to deal with it in concrete real time.”
Manfred and Clark also reverently spoke on the impact of Shohei Othani, saying that all players should be the face of baseball instead of one person, but not trying to hide the importance he has made to the game.
“I'll honestly tell you,” Clark said, “I've never seen anything like it. I appreciate all of the great performances on the field, but I've never seen anything like it. I hope it continues.”
Really, the only public difference of opinion between Clark and Manfred this day was their view on the 10 players who opted out of the All-Star Game, including the entire Astros four-player contingent. MLB executives were livid with the massive bailout, while the union was understanding of their decisions.
“One thing I've learned is not to question someone's injuries,” Clark said. “As players navigate this season, both themselves personally and their families, there's a realization that this is far from the norm.”
Manfred pointed out that players selected to the All-Star Game are required to be in attendance unless they are dealing with injuries or pitched the last two days of the season before the break, which is part of the collective bargaining agreement.
“We have a basic agreement provision that with certain narrow exceptions,” Manfred said, “participation in the All-Star Game is mandatory. We will review with the union how all of the people that didn't come fit within the exception to the rule. We bargained for that, and we intend on enforcing it.”
Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, who threw 129 pitches in his last start on Saturday, wasn't available to pitch in Tuesday's All-Star Game, but he still felt an obligation to attend the game and speak with the media.
“Even if I'm not going to pitch,” Cole said, “I think it's part of our responsibility to come and answer questions, and perform if we're able to, and represent the brand of the game. If you get elected to this by your peers, in my opinion you can show up. If you're not injured, it's something you should probably do.”
There also was discussion of vaccination, with seven teams still not crossing the 85% threshold that's required to loosen restrictions. While Clark ihas encouraged all players to get vaccinated, he's not going to try to influence anyone into making a decision.
“When guys ask, we put players directly in touch with (our) experts and make sure they have access to that information,” Clark said. “We've seen the number continue to climb.”