Let's Go Blues

Commissioner-elect Rob Manfred speak with the media during a news conference at the Major League Baseball owners meeting, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2015, in Phoenix. Manfred succeeds Bud Selig when he retires later this month
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Commissioner-elect Rob Manfred speak with the media during a news conference at the Major League Baseball owners meeting, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2015, in Phoenix. Manfred succeeds Bud Selig when he retires later this month. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

New baseball commissioner Rob Manfred has been in office a little more than 12 hours and he's already making some interesting waves. In an interview that aired on ESPN on Sunday morning, Manfred made it clear that examining the pace of the game is first on his list of priorities, but not far behind will be finding ways to "inject additional offense into the game."

Without being prompted for an example, Manfred specifically mentioned he'd be open to pursuing the elimination of defensive shifts, which he says give the defensive team a competitive advantage.

Defensive shifting is something we've seen implemented more and more in recent years as teams begin to shift — pun most certainly intended — to more sabermetric based research. It's more regularly reserved for strict pull hitters, which in most cases could be identified without a ton of research, but we're also seeing more creative — and even extreme — uses of defensive positioning that go beyond such tendencies. In some ways, it has become as important as pitch selection, which is sometimes influenced by positioning.

How Manfred would go about proposing the change and what his suggested guidelines would be are unclear. He'd almost have to create a specific zone that each defender has to stay within when each pitch is delivered. If that's the case, does that mean we'd see more lines drawn on the field, or is it up to umpire discretion? Can a defender creep in anticipating a bunt, or is that unfair? We'd be opening up a whole new can of worms here.

Those questions aside, Yahoo's Jeff Passan has learned that key figures within the game, including general managers who believe in sabermetrics, are actually open to such changes.

So perhaps the potential change has traction, but we're not entirely sure it's a change fans would get behind. Would more offense be great? Of course it would. Most would agree to that. But fans also enjoy the strategy that goes into the game, and eliminating something like the shift takes away one layer of discussion and second-guessing that we all like to engage in.

Which side of the argument are you on? Do you think the shift belongs in baseball, or would you like to see it banned?

glen a richter wrote:I have no problem with the shift. Baseball is a game of strategy, the shift adds another layer. Have at it.

dmiles2186 wrote:On another note, anyone have/use MLB.tv? I'm obviously in the Cardinals' market, but I thought about splitting the price w/ my dad and sharing the login info. There is a guy from our hometown that's trying to latch onto the Rangers and it would be awesome to follow him if he did. Plus, getting the At Bat app, plus MLB.tv for essentially 65 bucks seems like a no brainer, right?

dmiles2186 wrote:Spring training is but a few weeks away. Bud Selig is gone, gone, gone from office. And his replacement wants to do stupid things...

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-big-l ... 29801.html

Commissioner-elect Rob Manfred speak with the media during a news conference at the Major League Baseball owners meeting, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2015, in Phoenix. Manfred succeeds Bud Selig when he retires later this month
.

View photo
Commissioner-elect Rob Manfred speak with the media during a news conference at the Major League Baseball owners meeting, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2015, in Phoenix. Manfred succeeds Bud Selig when he retires later this month. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

New baseball commissioner Rob Manfred has been in office a little more than 12 hours and he's already making some interesting waves. In an interview that aired on ESPN on Sunday morning, Manfred made it clear that examining the pace of the game is first on his list of priorities, but not far behind will be finding ways to "inject additional offense into the game."

not_a_wings_fan wrote:But speeding up the pace would be great. Stopping hitters from stepping out on every single pitch would be an excellent start. I would love to see a pitcher who was ready just pitch a strike while the batter was fixing his balls out of the box. That would totally speed this thing up.

I don't think you can put a "play clock" on the pitchers, but that's the next step.

dmiles2186 wrote:

not_a_wings_fan wrote:But speeding up the pace would be great. Stopping hitters from stepping out on every single pitch would be an excellent start. I would love to see a pitcher who was ready just pitch a strike while the batter was fixing his balls out of the box. That would totally speed this thing up.

I don't think you can put a "play clock" on the pitchers, but that's the next step.

I agree about stepping out of the box. My rule would be either A) If you don't swing, you can't step out of the box. Or B) Get 2 step out's per AB. Something along those lines.

I would like a play clock on pitchers too, but from a TV perspective, I'd hope they'd avoid showing it until there are only 5 seconds left or something (like the NFL) so that the focus isn't on that clock.

ESPN Article wrote:But there were 731 more strikeouts in 2014 than in 2013 and 5,613 more than 2004.

cprice12 wrote:I think if they want to eliminate the shift, the most they should do is to not allow the 2nd baseman or SS to be on the other side of 2B until after the ball is hit. You don't need lines on the field for that. I wouldn't be against that.
I understand where they are coming from. It kind of makes a mockery of the game in a way.
But we do the same thing in softball when there is a lefty pull hitter up. I play SS and when they are up, I play on the other side of 2B. It's just smart baseball...but when we are doing it, it does feel like cheating in a way.
Nobody ever used to emply the shift back in the day. If they do away with it, people will forget about it.

cprice12 wrote:

dmiles2186 wrote:

not_a_wings_fan wrote:But speeding up the pace would be great. Stopping hitters from stepping out on every single pitch would be an excellent start. I would love to see a pitcher who was ready just pitch a strike while the batter was fixing his balls out of the box. That would totally speed this thing up.

I don't think you can put a "play clock" on the pitchers, but that's the next step.

I agree about stepping out of the box. My rule would be either A) If you don't swing, you can't step out of the box. Or B) Get 2 step out's per AB. Something along those lines.

I would like a play clock on pitchers too, but from a TV perspective, I'd hope they'd avoid showing it until there are only 5 seconds left or something (like the NFL) so that the focus isn't on that clock.

They are testing play clocks on pitchers in the minors this year. So it's coming if it goes over well there.

glen a richter wrote:Replay sucks. Of course I'm a traditionalist. I believe that hockey should still have the Norris, Smythe, Patrick and Adams, and I believe baseball should still have no replay (no sport should have replay). It's not a matter of using technology to improve the quality and equity of the game, it's a matter of if you went back in time and instituted replay from the beginning of the game, how many outcomes would be different? It would change the entire course of professional sports. If athletes don't get do-overs for human error, why should the officials? It's like when Berglund wiped out on the one timer attempt last season. What if they said "No fair, try again!"? It might change everything. Replay would have shown Jeffrey Maier reached over the fence and stole the ball away from Tony Tarasco or that Steve Bartman clearly interfered with Moises Alou in the Cubs/Marlins series. Maybe the Yankees don't beat the Orioles, George Steinbrenner has a meltdown and trades the entire core four. Mo Rivera ends up on the Cardinals, Derek Jeter ends up on the Cubs, Pettitte and Posada end up wherever and the Yankees never dominate the second half of the 90's. Maybe the Cubs go on to win the World Series, and many more after that, instead of the Marlins and stop being the lovable losers.

If you want to beat the shift, just bunt. It's happened plenty of times. That or learn how to hit to all fields. The shift is self correcting over time, creating an illegal defense in baseball is moronic.

dmiles2186 wrote:

cprice12 wrote:

dmiles2186 wrote:

not_a_wings_fan wrote:But speeding up the pace would be great. Stopping hitters from stepping out on every single pitch would be an excellent start. I would love to see a pitcher who was ready just pitch a strike while the batter was fixing his balls out of the box. That would totally speed this thing up.

I don't think you can put a "play clock" on the pitchers, but that's the next step.

I agree about stepping out of the box. My rule would be either A) If you don't swing, you can't step out of the box. Or B) Get 2 step out's per AB. Something along those lines.

I would like a play clock on pitchers too, but from a TV perspective, I'd hope they'd avoid showing it until there are only 5 seconds left or something (like the NFL) so that the focus isn't on that clock.

They are testing play clocks on pitchers in the minors this year. So it's coming if it goes over well there.

Yep, and I know they're testing it out in winter ball as well. I'm all for it.

glen a richter wrote:

cprice12 wrote:I think if they want to eliminate the shift, the most they should do is to not allow the 2nd baseman or SS to be on the other side of 2B until after the ball is hit. You don't need lines on the field for that. I wouldn't be against that.
I understand where they are coming from. It kind of makes a mockery of the game in a way.
But we do the same thing in softball when there is a lefty pull hitter up. I play SS and when they are up, I play on the other side of 2B. It's just smart baseball...but when we are doing it, it does feel like cheating in a way.
Nobody ever used to emply the shift back in the day. If they do away with it, people will forget about it.

If I have a tendency to loop shallow singles should the outfield not be allowed to play shallow to protect against that? If I'm trying to prevent doubles, can I not have my outfield play deep? What's the limit to restrictions on defensive positioning? Here, stand on this X and stay there?