The time to get accustomed to the pitch clock is nearly over with Opening Day less than a week away.
Max Scherzer has already turned in his final spring start, and afterward, he spoke out for the league to allow one drastic tweak to the new rule.
"I just wish MLB would give the umpires the ability to turn the clock off," Scherzer said. "You don't see any violations. As long as the hitters are playing at speed, we're all playing at pace, if the umpire wants to, let the umpire turn the clock off and we just play baseball."
Pitch clock violations have already been cut in half since the start of spring training, with games now averaging just about one violation, according to data released by Major League Baseball. With that in mind, Scherzer believes the clock should only be used when necessary, whether it be the pace of the game slowing down or a pitcher taking too much time before beginning their windup. But Scherzer also says the hitters have adjusted as well, and are already used to the clock, meaning it may not always be needed.
"The biggest rule here is that the hitter only has one timeout," Scherzer said. "So, that's really been one of the biggest changes from the offensive side of the ball, and that's forced the pace. And we've seen the results of that."
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