MLB unveils rule changes for 2023, including pitch timer, shift limits and bigger bases (2024)

FAQs

What are the changes to the MLB in 2023? ›

New rules were implemented, designed to speed up the game with a pitch clock, increase stolen bases with larger bases, banning positioning shifts until after the pitch has been released to increase batting average and, for the first, all 30 MLB clubs played each other at least once.

NEW YORK -- The average time of a nine-inning major league game dropped to 2 hours, 40 minutes in the first year of the pitch clock, a 24-minute decrease in a season of change that resulted in a spike in batting average and the most stolen bases in nearly 40 years.

Why did MLB increase base sizes? MLB is increasing base sizes in order to promote player safety and make bang-bang plays less dangerous for defenders and runners. There is slightly less distance between bases now, so there may be more stolen bases, but that would not necessarily be a "feature" of the new sizes.

Pitchers will also no longer be allowed to throw to first base or step off of the pitcher's mound as many times as they want. Instead they will be allowed two disengagements per plate appearance. This rules comes as the average length of a MLB game has crept over three hours.

If a pitcher reaches the 110 pitch limit while facing a batter, the pitcher may continue to pitch until one of the following occurs. o The batter reaches base, o That batter is retired, or o The third out is recorded to complete that half-inning or game.

In modern baseball, a starting pitcher is rarely expected to pitch for more than seven or eight innings, at which point, responsibility for the game is passed to relief pitchers, including specialist pitchers such as setup pitchers and closers.

Breaking up the tempo for pitchers and batters was a significant part of the game. And what did they do with the time saved? added 30 seconds to each commercial break. An average of almost 30 minutes was shaved off game time thanks to the pitch clock.

Welcome to the Pitch Clock Era!

While 73 percent of avid fans agree with the use of a clock, only 11 percent are in disagreement (16 percent neither agree nor disagree). Among sports fans, 59 percent say they like the clock with 14 percent disagreeing.

When it comes to the new pitch clock rule, the time limit for pitchers to deliver a pitch while runners are on base will be shortened from 20 seconds down to 18, in an effort to continue to speed up games, as evidenced by the implementation of the pitch clock last season.

Though the base-size change may have a modest impact on stolen-base success rate, the modification's primary goal is to give players more room to operate and to avoid collisions.

Why are bases 90 feet apart? ›

30 yards (90 feet) between the bases was first explicitly prescribed by the NABBP Convention of 1857. Through trial and error, 90 feet had been settled upon as the optimal distance. 100 feet would have given too much advantage to the defense, and 80 feet too much to the offense.

Yes, the physical bases. They are now bigger. First, second and third base have been, for well over a century, 15 square inches. The new bases are 18 square inches.

If a pitcher faces one batter to end an inning, he may be removed, but if he is brought back for a second inning, he must still face two more batters for a total of three.

(b) A pitcher once removed from the mound cannot return as a pitcher. Intermediate (50-70) Division, Junior League, and Senior League only: A pitcher remaining on defense in the game, but moving to a different position, can return as a pitcher anytime in the remainder of the game, but only once per game.

The oldest pitche was Randy Johnson, who at age 40 pitched a perfect game with 13 strikeouts, the second-most strikeouts in a perfect game! ‍John Montgomery Ward. At the age of 20 years, 105 days, Ward is the youngest pitcher ever to throw a perfect game. In was in 1880.

In 2023, nine-inning games averaged 2 hours and 39 minutes, down nearly 25 minutes from 2022 and the shortest since 1985 (2:40). Some of the changes for 2024, voted on by the Competition Committee, will include shortening the pitch clock with runners on base and decreasing the number of mound visits.

Changes include an even shorter pitch clock, a wider lane for runners going to first base, and more rules affecting pitchers. A news release detailed the changes for the 2024 season that were agreed upon by the Competition Committee, which is comprised of six owners, four players, and an umpire.

Do pitchers still hit in Major League Baseball (MLB)? They CAN hit by the current rules adopted as part of the universal DH instituted at the start of the 2022 season. A team that has a starting pitcher who is also an effective hitter can choose to have him bat.