MLB Opening Day: What to Watch as the Pitch Clock Era Starts

The New Rules

It sounds like hyperbole, but M.L.B.’s three major rule changes for this season — a pitch clock, a ban on shifts and some tweaks to encourage more stolen bases — are perhaps the most sweeping single-season changes in modern baseball history. (Switching to overhand pitching in the late 19th century was probably more extreme, but let’s put that aside.)

While a ban on defensive shifts will undoubtedly raise some batting averages — Anthony Rizzo of the Yankees has to be happy — and everyone seems to agree that an increase in stolen bases would be good, the big thing is definitely the pitch clock. In spring training, it reduced the average game time by 25 minutes and got mostly positive feedback, even if there were more than a few awkward moments when an automatic strike reared its ugly head. There was also a 20-second strikeout, so stay alert!

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/30/sports/baseball/mlb-opening-day-scores-new-rules.html