FanPost

5 year changes that will improve baseball

I'm writing this to be considered as a Pinstripe Alley writer for the 2017 season (and maybe beyond). I have purposely abstained from reading any other Fanposts on the topic, therefore forgive me if some points are repeated.

The median age of a MLB fan is 55 years old. That is not good. Here are 3 major items that MLB needs to work on for the next 5 years.

1. Pace of Game

I specifically did not type 'Time of Game'. If the pace of an MLB game is fast, and the game goes into extra innings, I don't care if it goes over 3 hours - it's exciting free baseball at that point. Unfortunately sports fans of my generation complain that baseball is boring; this is not due to length of games (though that doesn't help), but instead the pace of the game.

In depth studies have shown that game length can be attributed to many factors. However, without removing ad time, game time can be reduced significantly by increasing the pace of game. How so? Keep games exciting. Players do not need to call a time out at the plate because they 'are not ready for a pitch'. Likewise pitchers do not need to be permitted to step off the mound - Why should a pitcher get a reset if he is not in sync with the catcher?

I can recall hearing about advice Greg Maddux gave to Jake Peavy. Maddux said something along the lines of: You should know the type and location of your next pitch before you step on the mound.

If pitchers keep a fast tempo, and batters are not allowed to call time-outs at the plate, the speed of game will increase. Fans therefore, will naturally pay more attention to games, and find themselves less distracted between pitches.

Sidenote: Pace can be further increased if MLB eliminates unnecessary time outs on the bases. David Ortiz doesn't need to call time to unstrap his robocop protection and re-adjust his helmet after he hits a ground-rule double.

2. Eliminate replays, allow fan advantage.

This is indirectly related to point #1.

There is nothing more frustrating than your team losing because of a blown call. I get it. However the game is slowly deteriorating because we are removing the 'human' element of the game. As frustrating as it is to be on the wrong end of a bad call, blown calls can make baseball games memorable.

Some examples:

  • Yogi Berra complaining, for his entire lifetime, that Jackie Robinson did not beat his tag. The picture itself is iconic. Was it a blown call? No, probably not. But regardless of which way the call went, that play at the plate would be memorable.
  • 1996, ALCS, Game 1: Derek Jeter hit a home run over Tony Tarasco's head...except did he? 12 year old Jeffrey Maier reached over the wall and robbed Tarasco of a catch. This has been known as one of the most significant blown calls in baseball, but we all know it to be a memorable moment in playoff history. Sidenote: If you look closely, Tarasco probably would not have caught the ball anyway.
Mistakes are part of the game: Owners make them (Arod's contact), general managers make them (Cashman/Mike Lowell), Managers make them (Girardi's binder from hell), and players make them (Posada losing track of outs in game 4 of the 2009 ALCS). Why can't umpires make mistakes?

Tarasco's failed catch above brings up another point: Allow fans to interfere from their seats. If the Yankees are hosting the Red Sox, and Gardner is leaping for a ball in the stands, every Yankee fan in the surrounding seats should give Brett some space (looking at you, Steve). However if Mookie Bets is tracking a ball at Yankee Stadium, every Yankee fan in surrounding seats should be able to reach out for the baseball. It's home field advantage, and the fans paid good money for those seats.

3. Culture
Bryce Harper has complained that the game is no fun. Here's a couple ways to change that without advocating excessive home run celebrations.

3a. Physicality.

First, if any catcher, not named Buster Posey, was hurt in a plate collision on May 25th, 2011, MLB rules would remain allowing collisions at the plate. However when the rules of the game impact high salaried and popular players, MLB somehow thinks the rules need to change. Players have always been taught to break up a double play, and to knock the catcher down if he is blocking the plate - and fans have almost universally admired this. Afterall, Posey did not need to block the plate to make the tag...

I grew up when the Yankees and Red Sox hated each other (90's-2000's). But I wish I could have seen when they really hated each other (70's). Baseball was fun when players preferred to defend teammates instead of chatting with opposing players on the base-paths. Fans do not care about multi-millionaire's on opposite teams being friends. They do care that the players are 100% focused on beating the other team.

3b. 1 player-1 team

Players should not be the property of a team. However, players, fans, and MLB clubs alike benefit when a homegrown player spends his career with the same club. There is no denying that a players merchandising is worth more, their advertising is worth more, and possibly their post-career prospects are worth more if they are known to have spent their entire career with team. There is also an argument to be made that MLB will keep more fans if their favorite players remain on their favorite team.

Did we all love the core-four because they won World Championships? Or did we follow them because we saw them grow, develop, and play together from day 1? Maybe both, but it is highly unlikely the Yankees struck gold with Williams, Pettite, Jeter, Posada and Rivera at almost the same time. What is more likely is the club invested in developing a 'winning' culture with homegrown talent, and made it a priority to keep that talent.

MLB and teams would benefit in the long run if they can keep young fans, and brand players with certain teams in the long run. It may be wise for MLB to allow a separate bucket of funds, expiring each year, that can only be used to help extend the contracts of homegrown players.

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