Chalk up 2020 as baseball's Lost Season.
Nothing the owners and players will do going forward will salvage the lingering bitterness of money issues in the middle of an economic crushing pandemic.
MLB will take this messed up world to screw with the game's rules and traditions. Some of the projected changes:
All teams will now use the Designated Hitter. The lack of the DH was the National League's last bastion of tradition - - - and baseball strategy of a manager thinking ahead in a game to use his bullpen and field players in a winning combination. The DH eliminates much of the manager's decision process: pinch hitting, pitching around hitters, double switches, etc.
There will be the realignment that sees
each team play only within its own division and against the five teams
of the corresponding division in the other league. The exact
permutations of that scheduling arrangement could take a variety of
forms (e.g. a pair of three-game series and one four-game series against
divisional opponents, plus one four-game series against each of the
five teams in the opposing league’s corresponding division), but the
goal will be to generally limit travel schedules to the extent possible,
not that it’s a perfect setup for all clubs. In the past many owners have sought realignment by geography to reduce travel expenses. This may be an opportunity to put that new framework in place, but to the potential cost of current rivalries.
A major change is to begin extra innings
with a runner on second base in an alleged effort to avoid marathon games.
(Pitchers would not be charged with an earned run if said runner
scores.) This is a terrible option. It fundamentally changes the purpose of fundamentals of the game: rewarding a team without getting a double. It penalizes a pitcher who at the start of an inning with a runner in scoring position. It also messes up the most sacred thing: statistics. A player's stats need to be fully earned.
If MLB and teams are so concerned that this short season will wreck havoc on pitching staffs because of extra inning games: allow bigger pitching rosters or ALLOW TIES. There is nothing wrong with a tie (it happens in many other sports, including the early history of baseball).
They have also discussed the possibility of allowing already
subbed-out players to reenter the game once it reaches extras. Is this Little League??!!! It gives managers an unlimited Get Out of Jail free card for his line up mistakes.
Since the owners and players have been at odds for the entire year, it is doubtful that any meaningful agreement can be reached by the sides. Health and safety issues are still up in the air. Major league facilities were closed down within weeks after positive tests from players and staff. No one will address what will happen if a player tests positive during the season. Does he go on the DL? Does all his teammates have to be quarantined as being in contact with him? If more than 4 or 5 players test positive, will the club be suspended from play? Do they then forfeit games to get the season to the playoffs? What about umpires and coaches health issues?
There is no guarantee that MLB will get all this right, but substantially changing rules is wrong.
