Major League Baseball has confirmed a litany of rules tweaks that it says will increase the game's liveliness and pace of play.
New in 2023 will be the rollout of a pitch clock, larger bases, and the banning of infield shifts. Also returning for the upcoming season is the use of so-called ghost runners on second base beginning in extra innings, which was first introduced during the virus-shortened 2020 campaign.
The pitch clock, perhaps borrowing equally from football's play clock and basketball's shot clock, will call for pitchers to throw their next pitch 15 seconds after the last with the bases empty, and 20 seconds with runners aboard. A delay on account of the pitcher will result in a ball, while a batter's delay will result in a strike. Umpires will wear a vibrating buzzer that will alert them when the clock has expired.
Meanwhile, bases have been expanded from 15 inches to 18 in width, with the hope of encouraging more aggressive baserunning and steals, as well as reducing injuries.
Finally, the hotly debated defensive shifts are now banned, with two infielders required on each side of second base when a pitch is delivered. The idea is the balanced alignment will result in more base hits and action on the basepaths.
As for ghost runners, they are back after what the league has deemed to be a successful three-year trial run. The aim was to preclude marathon extra-inning affairs, which can drag on for hours and wreak havoc on pitching staffs for days afterwards. However, ghost runners will not be deployed in the postseason, with games reverting back to the traditional format.
According to MLB, the rules were implemented based on fan feedback. In the minor leagues, the new protocols resulted in "quicker games, fewer strikeouts, and more stolen bases."
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