The second game of the Warriors/Rockets NBA playoff series last night was a lot more interesting than the first one. There was less flopping and less bitching and moaning to the officials last night and both teams shot much better from the 3-point line as compared to Game 1 where it was brick after brick after brick. The Warriors took a 2-0 lead in the series 115-109 but this game was always in doubt. Game 3 on Saturday night in Houston should be a good one.
The second game of the Celtics/Bucks NBA playoff series last night was a mirror image of the first one. In Game 1, the Celtics defense smothered Giannis Antetokounmpo and dominated the game winning by 22 points; the score reflected the Celtics’ dominance. In Game 2, things were close at the half – Bucks led by 4 points – and then came the deluge. There was a stretch in that third quarter where the Bucks outscored the Celtics 28-2 and coasted from there to a 25-point win. For Game 3 in Boston, the oddsmakers have the Celtics as a 1.5-point favorite; toss a coin here…
As the federal trial related to college basketball recruiting practices continues to reveal “irregularities” that the NCAA super-sleuths never knew existed, the NCAA actually did something constructive regarding another collegiate sport. The NCAA revised some of the football rules in favor of increased player safety. For every ton of contempt one should heap upon them for being unable to enforce their own arcane recruitment rules, give them a couple of pounds of respect for the football safety decisions:
- When a play involving possible targeting is under review, the officials must now either confirm the call or overturn the call. No longer can they “let the call on the field stand”. [Good change]
- Players will not be allowed to hit an opponent with a blind-side block if the blocker “attack[s] an opponent with forcible contact.” The result will be a 15-yard penalty – – and it could involve targeting also. [Lots of ambiguity in “forcible contact” here…]
- Overtime rules have been changed. After 4 OTs conducted as they have been in the past and if the score is still tied, teams will run alternating two-point conversions instead of offensive possessions from the 25-yardline. Also, there will be two-minute rest periods between the second and third overtimes and another two-minute break after the fourth overtime. [Probably will affect less than a half-dozen games a year.]
- On kickoff returns, teams will no longer be allowed to use a “two-man wedge formation”. [I presume there is data to suggest this will reduce injuries; therefore, it is a good change.]
Speaking of rule changes, MLB is experimenting with rule changes in a different way. MLB has “partnered with” the Atlantic League – one of the country’s independent baseball leagues – to try out some changes that could have a significant change to the game. [Aside: I suspect that “partnered with” translates simply to “MLB has tossed a wad of cash in the direction of the Atlantic League.” Whatever…] The independent leagues are rarely avenues that players follow on their way to the major leagues, but the quality of play is above college baseball and compares to the low minor leagues. Most of the experimental rules are aimed at speeding up the game; some others intend to increase the number of balls put in play and total scoring. Here is a sampling:
- Time between innings is 1 minute and 45 seconds. In MLB it is 2:00 for locally televised games and 2:45 for national games. Players and pitchers need to run from the dugout to their positions to loosen up.
- Radar will be implemented to assist home-plate umpires in calling balls and strikes; the umpires will wear an earpiece to “get advice”.
- There are no defensive shifts allowed. There must be 2 infielders on either side of second base when the pitch is delivered.
- The size of the bases will be increased from 15”X15” to 18”X 18”. [Aside: I am not sure I understand why this is important, but what the heck…]
- There are no mound visits by managers, coaches or players allowed. Period.
Those five rule changes are dramatic departures from the way the game has always been played, but those five are nothing as compared to a sixth experimental change that will come to pass in the second half of next season in the Atlantic League:
- The pitcher’s mound will be moved back 2 feet; it will then be 62 feet and 6 inches from home plate. [Two dozen baseball stat geeks just passed out as I typed those words.]
The idea behind that experiment is simple. If every team has a pitcher or three who can approach or exceed 100 mph on his fastball, that increases strikeouts and suppresses scoring. There is no real way to put a “speed limit” on fastballs so maybe the way to accommodate this “problem” is to move the mound back and give hitters a tad more time to read the pitch.
Let’s do some math:
- A baseball traveling at 100 mph is traveling at 146.7 feet per second.
- At the current mound distance, it arrives at home plate in 0.41 seconds.
- With the mound moved back, it would arrive at home plate in 0.43 seconds.
That difference is small enough that I am glad to see that MLB is doing some experimentation to see if it matters at all before trying it in MLB because someone thought it was a good idea. Another thing I hope someone pays attention to is the effect this change might have on breaking ball pitchers. With an extra 2 feet to play with, some sinker ball pitchers might be able to start their sinker chest high and have it drop below the knees by the time it gets “into the hitting zone”.
Finally, since I was mentioning baseball below the major league level here, please consider this item from Dwight Perry’s Sideline Chatter column in the Seattle Times recently:
“Some well-meaning baseball parents trying to dry off the infield for their sons’ high-school game in Ridgefield, Conn., poured 25 gallons of gasoline onto it, lit it — and got only 15-foot flames and a $50,000 tab to remove contaminated soil for their efforts.
“In other words, third base wasn’t the only hot corner at Governors Field.”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………