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| "candlesticks always make a nice gift" |
Leave it to Major League Baseball to royally screw up a well-intentioned initiative. Previously, we have lauded Commissioner
Rob Manfred for taking on the players "union" and
trying to shorten games with pace-of-play initiatives. A pitch clock was originally slated for this season, but somehow got waylaid during negotiations. Now, the
actual 2018 initiatives are well-intentioned but totally confusing and lacking teeth. The
major change is that mound visits by
anyone (that don't involve a pitching change)
will be limited to six in a nine-inning game. Except, not really. At the umpire's discretion, teams can get additional visits for a compelling reason. Plus, there is no sanction for just making extra visits without permission. Also, teams get an additional visit for every extra inning played. This is a policy?
