First glimpse of MLB’s new rules reveal baseball won’t be the same

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The new rules are sure to create all kinds of quirks and unforeseen issues in MLB games this year. 

But we might be able to retire the irony award on the first day of the Grapefruit League. When asked about what concerned him most with all that is changing, Astros manager Dusty Baker highlighted that there is less time with a pitch clock to give signs and, thus, the potential elimination of dummy signs to disguise what is being called from the bench such as a pitchout on defense or a hit and run on offense. 

He said he was “concerned” about not being able to aptly camouflage his strategy from the dugout, adding, “You’re always aware of people stealing signs and then there’s the sensitive area: Are you cheating or is it part of the game?” 

Baker is the Astros’ manager because his predecessor, A.J. Hinch, was dismissed as part of the most egregious illegal sign-stealing case in history. So, you know … 

Welcome to the new world of baseball with, among other items, a pitch clock (15 seconds to deliver a pitch with no one on base and 20 seconds with a runner on), the removal of extreme shifts, bigger bases and limits on disengagements with the mound and pickoff throws. MLB’s hope is that in concert these rules speed pace, get the ball in play with greater frequency and create more on-base action. 

New world order

The exhibition season began Friday in Arizona and Saturday in Florida, and we should also think about it as the opening of labs as teams experiment to deduce how to best play within the new strictures — and how to find advantages when possible. To exemplify that, Mets manager Buck Showalter has closed off parts of practices from fans, media and any other prying eyes to work on strategies to counteract or capitalize on the new rules. 

To that end, when told what Baker had said about sign-stealing, Showalter mentioned: “There are so many things we are afraid to copy from high schools or colleges because, ‘Oh they are amateurs and we are pros.’ There are things they do better.” 

If I were guessing along with the edge-seeking Mets manager, I would bet (among other things) Showalter is toying with using the kind of symbol-filled cards that are flashed on college football sidelines to convey plays quickly to a huddle — there are simultaneously active signs held up and dummies so the opponent cannot easily decipher what is in play. 

Showalter said he would not reveal anything new during exhibition games, which for the Mets began with two contests Saturday — the first under the new rules was at The Ballpark of Palm Beaches against Baker’s defending champs. What should be recognized is that in the starting lineups the Astros had one regular, first baseman Jose Abreu, and so did the Mets, though catcher Omar Narvaez was the designated hitter. 

So most of those playing were in the minors recently and previously had played under most, if not all of these rules. The minor league players, and especially the coaches, are all being consulted more than normal at this time of year for their experiences with the new edicts. Thus, they are probably all more familiar with what was on display in the Astros’ 4-2 victory, which was played in 2:33. 

What could all but be guaranteed was this game would have taken an additional hour last year: There were 16 pitchers used, tons of deep counts, six walks, 21 strikeouts, two hit-by-pitches and 18 at-bats with runners in scoring position. 

Most noticeable, if you were unfamiliar with it, was the removal of dawdling. There was almost no wandering as a clock counting down behind the plate and in right-center field was a character in the game. Pitchers stayed mostly on or near the rubber and always within the pitching circle. Hitters, who must be set in the batter’s box with no fewer than eight seconds left on the clock, mostly stayed inside the chalk batter’s box or relatively attached — and fiddling with batting gloves was not nearly as overt. In fact, when it came to who looked most unsettled, it is possible we have the wrong name for the pitch clock. 

As Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefner said, “I think it is a hitter’s clock because pitchers can always adjust because we’re the ones that initiate action. The hitter always has to react to us. So if now there’s a constraint of time that the hitter has to operate in and we get to control that constraint, that’s to our advantage.” 

Hefner said that the pitchers who will struggle with it, notably, are those who have not worked on their conditioning because “we have to throw more pitches, more often.” 

A learning curve

Half innings that were 1-2-3 were blurs. When runners were on base, the extra five seconds pitchers had to deliver each pitch could be felt as they used the additional time to try to disrupt the running game. Still, it was considerably quicker than previously in the majors with runners on base. A violation of the clock results in either a ball (pitcher violation) or strike (hitter violation) being called — and there were no violations in this game for any of the new rules. 

Per the new rules, extreme shifts were gone. But not shifts. There must be two players on each side of second base now and all infielders must be on the infield dirt as the pitcher begins his delivery. So gone, for example, is having an infielder in short right field and three infielders to the right of second base for lefty pull hitters. Still, for most lefties, the third baseman was pulled toward shortstop and the shortstop was as far up the middle as possible without being in violation. 

There are two imaginary lines drawn from the tip of second base toward the outfield grass to create a triangle that the middle infielders may not cross into before the pitch — Showalter believes actual lines should be drawn so it is clear where a fielder can and can’t go. Showalter thinks that, yes, there will be more pulled hits between first and second that in the past were lost because of a shifted player in right field within the extreme shift. But Showalter believes a second baseman will still play on the dirt toward that hole, but since the shortstop cannot cross beyond the bag before the pitch that there are going to be more hits between where the second baseman is stationed and the second base bag than in recent years. 

In addition, Showalter expects “more five-man” infields (which is legal), especially in late-game situations — but that runs the risk of having just two outfielders. 

If there were instances on Saturday in which there were encroachments on what could be gotten away with, it came with middle infielders (especially the second baseman) either beginning on the grass and moving forward onto the dirt late or not fully coming off of the grass. Showalter was unsure before the game if the umpires could call the violation or if it had to be challenged by the manager. 

The Commissioner’s Office told me that an umpire could call it, but after the game when I talked to crew chief Lance Barksdale, he was under the impression he could not call it. He then consulted with his superiors and he returned to tell me he could, indeed, call a violation in this situation. 

“We are learning too,” said Barksdale, who has umpired in the majors for more than two decades. 

Keep in mind that if the ball is put in play and a violation is determined, then the offense has the choice to accept the outcome (which it would if there was a hit) or take the called ball. 

Getting comfortable

There were four stolen bases in the first five innings — two against the only veteran who pitched for the Mets, Adam Ottavino. The long-levered righty is notoriously bad at holding runners and told me, “I’m kind of hoping to fall into some traps just so I can have some comfort [with the new rules].” 

Bases are now 18 inches rather than 15, shortening the distance from bag to bag. Plus, pitchers can only disengage the rubber twice within any plate appearance with runners on — think of it as a combination of two for pickoffs, step-offs, timeouts. If the pitcher does not pick off the runner on a third attempt, the runner is automatically advanced to the next base. One item to counteract that, a few executives told me, is that they expect pitchouts — which have fallen out of favor in recent years — to rise dramatically this year. 

Still, as Ottavino noted, “It would probably be not in my best interest to have a zero WHIP through the spring because it is better that I have baserunners now and deal with the uncomfortability here and get it out of the way rather than deal with it for the first time in the regular season.” 

Ottavino actually did have first and third and one out — and got out of it. 

Overall, the expectation is that the best players in the world are the best because they adapt so well, including to new rules. They will have six spring weeks to adjust and the general feeling was that a few weeks into the season they will made all the new rules second nature. 

To get there, I asked Showalter if he preferred that the umpires work with players and managers through spring by talking to them to avoid violations or not. Showalter thought tough love in the Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues would be better to get everyone up to speed. 

“Down here,” he said, “I would like to see them hammer down on it.”