New MLB rules welcomed with mixed reactions

Major League Baseball introduced a set of new rules this year to speed up games and attract younger fans.

The bases are bigger to improve player safety and may also encourage more aggressive baserunning. Pitchers can only disengage from the pitching rubber twice per plate appearance. And we are not stopping there – a new pitch clock gives players 30 seconds to resume play between batters. Between pitches, pitchers have 15 seconds with nobody on and 20 seconds if there is a baserunner.

Less than a week into the spring training exhibition schedule, MLB is shaving about 20 minutes off the average length of games compared to last spring.

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Miami Marlins beat the Houston Astros 4-3 in a spring training game on Monday in 2 hours, 19 minutes. “The game feels more exciting,” Washington Nationals left-hander Patrick Corbin said. “Even some of the high-scoring games are under three hours.”

Fans seeing the new-look sport for the first time this week have had mixed reviews. Some, like lifelong Houston fan Ryan Murphy, are indifferent to the changes.

“It’s irrelevant to us as fans, honestly,” said Murphy. “Players might think something different of it, but for us it’s all the same. “How would I know the bases are bigger, honestly? I mean, we see a pitch clock out here, and we know it’s there, but it doesn’t matter to me.”