A whole new ball game in the works
From expanding the DH to penalizing bad teams, MLB looks to speed it up
Major League Baseball and its union have had substantive discussions in recent days over a series of proposals, among the most drastic proposed changes in years, that could bring significant rule changes to the sport in 2019 and beyond, according to two sources familiar with those talks. The discussions have included both on-field rule changes, pushed by commissioner Rob Manfred, and proposals from the union to improve competitive balance.
According to reports by the Athletic and ESPN, the specific rule-change proposals include:
The adoption of the designated hitter in the National League, making the DH universal across both leagues.
A rule requiring pitchers to face a minimum of three batters, except in the case of injury or when finishing an inning.
A 20-second pitch clock, a time-saving device Manfred has espoused for more than a year now.
Asingle trade deadline before the all-star break, to replace the traditional July 31 deadline and the Aug. 31 waiver-trade deadline.
The expansion of rosters to 26 from 25 players, with a maximum of 12 pitchers.
A reduction in mound visits to five from six.
A rule, which would be tested in spring training and the allstar game, in which each halfinning in extra innings would begin with a runner on second base.
Tweaks to the draft order to reward winning teams and penalize perennial losing teams.
Arule that would permit twosport athletes, such as Kyler Murray, to sign major league contracts as enticement to play baseball.
Though the proposals are preliminary and it’s unclear if any would be implemented in 2019 — the DH rule, for example, would almost certainly have to be pushed to future seasons because NL teams have largely finalized their 2019 rosters — the talks represent a significant step for a sport that’s seen rising acrimony between owners and players over the slow pace of the last two free-agent markets.
Top baseball officials have criticized the union publicly in the past for not showing a willingness to come to the bargaining table, even as top union officials have criticized some owners over a perceived lack of competitiveness. Many of MLB’s proposals were designed for the purpose of speeding up the game, one of Manfred’s top priorities. The pitch-clock would penalize pitchers or hitters who stall between pitches with a ball or a strike call. The three-batter minimum and the 12-pitcher limit on rosters would both reduce the frequency of pitching changes.
While the three-batter minimum could cause the loss of jobs for some traditional lefthanded specialists, the roster expansion to 26 players — bringing 30 extra big league jobs — could be an enticement for union to agree.
The union, meantime, has made it a priority to entice teams to spend money in an effort to compete, after watching many teams largely sit out this free-agent market, which has caused a logjam of roughly 100 free agents still unsigned with spring training camps set to open next week. The union has also seen tanking — teams stripping their payroll and hoarding prospects and draft picks — as a fundamental problem.
The union’s proposals reportedly would give improved draft position to high-performing, lower-revenue teams while penalizing teams that repeatedly lose a large number of games.
Of all the proposed changes, the universal DH arguably would be the most significant to the game on the field. Since 1973, baseball has operated with different rules for the National and American Leagues — with pitchers hitting in the former, but not the latter — and necessitating shifting rules and roster manipulation for interleague and World Series games.
The union has long backed the adoption of the DH in the NL, under the thinking that those jobs would largely go to veteran hitters at higher salaries.
Some NL owners, however, have resisted the change, and it remains unclear how much support there would be for a rule change — despite the fact pitchers batted just .115 with a .292 OPS in 2018, both all-time lows.