Major League Baseball has gone great lengths over the past couple of years to speed up the game. Several new rule changes, which go into effect this year, will help them further accomplish that mission.
One major rule difference: The implementation of a pitch clock. Pitchers will get 15 seconds between pitches to a batter if no one is on base, and 20 seconds between pitches if there are runners on base. If a pitcher doesn’t get the pitch off in time, they’ll surrender an automatic ball. If a batter violates the timing rules, they will be given an automatic strike.
Pitcher analyst Rob Friedman showed a side-by-side video comparing a half inning outing from Landon Knack (a minor league player in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ organization) to the time it took for then-Dodgers reliever Pedro Báez to throw one pitch.
The difference between both videos is quite telling, and a great example as to why this rule was necessary.
Indeed, the new pitch clock system will be a welcoming change for baseball fans. It will take pitchers and batters time to adjust, no doubt, but the fans are unquestionably the real winners here.
The 2023 MLB regular season is scheduled to commence on Mar. 30, and it will run through Oct. 1. The opening round of the playoffs, the Wild Card Series, will begin on Oct. 3.
