This is a relatively evergreen story, or at least one that can be revised every few years. It’s the story of sports and change, and how games evolve to try and meet the tastes of the next generation. And what that evolution does to current fans, some who view change like a nuclear power plant in their backyard.
This story in particular is about Major League Baseball, a sport and professional league that has the most obvious attachment to its foundations and history, one that can’t help but compare each year to it’s prior. Where sports like football and basketball seem to debut a new rulebook every season like it was a series, baseball has a hard time moving past anything cosmetic, and even that can cause an uproar. But this season, MLB is instituting a few new rules with substance. And they’re getting a debut in spring training as we speak.
The most discussed or maybe controversial is adding a pitch clock between 15 and 30 seconds, which basically means the pitcher can’t take forever to throw or they get an automatic ball. And the batter, for their part, has to be fully engaged with pitcher with eight seconds left, or they get an automatic strike. Which, as we’ve seen already, can mean a third strike and even the end of a game. Which is like your favorite TV show getting cancelled in the off-season and never having a proper finale. The goal is to reduce game time from under the 3+ hours it took last season, which was actually down considerably from years prior. So far, it seems to have worked, albeit with a small sample size. But if the goal is to reduce the length of games, then this seems to be a remedy.
A second rule change is to make the bases bigger, which could go unnoticed to the casual baseball fan, if there are any. This might encourage more base stealing and eliminate some of the pressure on always playing for the home run. There are some other changes, including restrictions on infield shifts and making a second base ghost runner permanent in extra innings. These rules both add some offense and keep players and fans from enduring never ending games.
As expected, the changes have been a bit polarizing, especially the pitch clock. And especially in the divisive space of social media, where a pitcher having to speed it up ranks as a global travesty. These are the same kinds of folks who declared New Coke the end of the world. They also are people who regularly watch and pay for baseball. There seems to be less angst about larger bases and infield shifts for a long list of reasons, particularly given the way shifts have somewhat bastardized the sport. But as an aggregate, and there’s a long way to go in this election, I’d say we’ve got a split decision.
And really, that’s the gamble Major League Baseball is taking. Do you reward the loyal but aging audience that’s stuck with you through thick and thin and strikes and steroids, or do you take the bet on what’s behind door number two – namely a younger, less patient, and more fickle audience that will fund your future – or so you hope. That’s the challenge with a sport like baseball, one for which change is a case of I must pay the rent, I can’t pay the rent. And one that should be noted is still quite solvent, although the recent news of the default of regional sports networks might frighten that equation. It’s pretty easy for the NBA to do some crazy stuff, as their fans have long accepted evolution. A four-point line? Why not! Two basketballs at ones? Sure! But for baseball, the risks are just much higher.
Are these rule changes a good idea? Time will tell, but my guess is yes, even if it doesn’t get the millennial bump they’re hoping for. As baseball will find, it’s hard to compete in the world of cat videos and TikTok celebrities. But I also don’t think they’ll lose loyal fans either. For all the talk of hating change and being done with the sport, we all know true baseball fans just can’t quit the game. Which is why I say speed up the game, grow the bases, and whatever else the league wants to try. Change is good. Just as long as it doesn’t mean a power plant in my backyard.
Keith Strudler is the director of the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University. You can follow him on twitter at @KeithStrudler
The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.
