Change And More Change …

The tenth of May is abbreviated as 5/10 and so let me be the first to wish you a Happy Woolworth’s Day.

The full NFL schedule will be announced tomorrow, but the league has already announced the Europe Games for 2023.  There will be five of them and the folks in London and in Germany are going to get to see some upper-tier teams this year; lots of playoff teams from last year will be venturing across the pond this year.  And Jax – – a playoff team last year – – will play two games in London.

1. Week 4:   Jags/Falcons – – Wembley Stadium in London
2. Week 5:   Jags/Bills – – Tottenham Hotspur Field in London
3. Week 6:   Ravens/Titans – – Tottenham Hotspur Field in London
4. Week 9:   Chiefs/Dolphins – – Frankfurt, Germany
5. Week 10: Colts/Pats – – Frankfurt, Germany

With an odd number of regular season games, this is the year that AFC teams have the “ninth home game”.  That is the reason why AFC teams are the “home team” in all five of the Europe Games; that way all the NFC teams get a full slate of “home games” as part of their revenue stream.

Switching gears …  The rule changes implemented this year by MLB that have led to shorter games with a higher “action density” than in recent years seem to be working.  Notwithstanding some dire predictions by some baseball fans/historians, the Earth has not ceased to spin on its axis in response to these changes.  I love the pitch clock; the larger bases have put the stolen base back into the games.  Originally, I did not like the idea of “banning/limiting The Shift” but I have learned to live with it rather quickly.  But maybe the winds of change are not over when it comes to MLB.

The baseball mavens continue to experiment with robo-umpires to call balls and strikes in minor league games.  The Atlantic League – – made up of independent teams of minor league players – uses robo-umps to call balls and strikes.  One of the noted benefits so far is that there are no arguments with the home plate umpire about a called pitch because all the human umpire is doing is relaying the call he got in an earpiece from the “computer”.  Arguing about or grousing at a call is pointless; the agent making the call in question is not human and not present.  Fewer meaningless baseball arguments cannot be all bad…

In Triple-A games there are also robo-umps, but they are used differently.  The human umpire makes the calls on balls and strikes; teams have limited numbers of challenges where they can appeal the human’s call to the robo-umpire.  I have not read much about how this is working out, but the idea seems sound to me – – if the number of permitted challenges is small.

If/when robo-umps come to MLB, there will need to be a uniform way to set the standard for a strike zone.  The dimensions of home plate do not change so two of the three spatial dimensions are fixed for every hitter.  It is the vertical dimension that will need to be set and defined.  The rulebook defines that vertical dimension, and it has been largely ignored for decades.  Is that rulebook definition the strike zone that would be enforced by robo-umpires?  Moreover, the strike zone for different players will move up and down in the vertical dimension.  Using players from baseball’s past, consider the height of the strike zone for Freddie Patek (5’ 5” tall) and Dave Kingman (6’ 6” tall).

Neither of those two “issues” should be disqualifying for the use of robo-umpires should everything else associated with their introduction appear positive, but they are issues to be addressed.  One subtlety associated with robo-umpires is in the mindset of the umpire behind the plate.  The robo-umpire is focused solely on the position of the ball as it comes to the catcher – – was it or was it not in the strike zone.  So, the robo-umpire may tell the home plate umpire that a pitch was a “Ball” – – but the batter swung and missed so it needs to rung up as a strike.  Absent concentration and attention to detail can lead to confusion for the home plate umpire.

As they say in those infomercials that air at 3:00 AM, “But wait, there’s more …”

Here are some other rule changes that are in the early stages of contemplation:

• The Double Hook:  This rule puts a burden on a team’s starting pitcher.  If he goes five full innings, all goes as normal.  However, if the starter is removed from the game before five full innings, then the DH is removed also, and the incumbent pitcher would have to bat in the slot previously occupied by the DH.  This rule would effectively end the idea of a team using an “Opener”.  I think I like this rule change…
• The Designated Pinch Runner:  A bench player can be used as a pinch runner once in a game and both players would be allowed to return to the game.  This could allow a manager the strategic advantage of a faster base runner at some point in the game without sacrificing the player who is run for.  The player in the game would return to his normal position at the end of the inning and the designated runner would be eligible to come into the game as a pitcher or position player later in the game.  I think I like this rule change too – – so long as it can only be done once in a game.
• The Single Pick-Off Move:  The rule change implemented this year limits a pitcher to two pick-off/step-back events per batter.  That tends to speed up the game and enhances base stealing at the same time.  The idea here is to limit the pitcher to only one such event per batter.  I am not nearly as interested in this concept as I am in the two listed above…

These three rule change possibilities are also being tested in the Atlantic League.  It remains to be seen if any or all of them will make their way into the normal minor-league baseball structure.

Finally, I’ll close today with these words about change from Alfred, Lord Tennyson:

“And slowly answered Arthur from the barge:

The old order changeth, yielding place to new;

And God fulfills himself in many ways,

Lest one good custom should corrupt the world.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………