It's been a long, long time since it's been this difficult to produce offense in Major League Baseball. The league batting average, which currently sits at .237, is tied for the lowest all-time with the .237 average from the infamous 1968 season, now known colloquially as the "year of the pitcher." Six no-hitters have been thrown already this year, with a few other close calls mixed in there, and the lack of run-scoring has resulted in some becoming disenchanted with the game of baseball.
And while this can be attributed to many things, including increased technology to aid pitchers and a swing-for-the-fences mentality that makes striking out more common and acceptable, Phillies reliever Archie Bradley sees one primary culprit. He passionately discussed what he feels needs to change in the latest episode of "The Chris Rose Rotation" from Jomboy Media.
"...I don't want to take anything away from these guys throwing the no-hitters because, I mean, to not give up a hit for nine innings is an incredible feat," Bradley said (start at the 37:32 mark). "...And this is where, I'm gonna say this because I don't give a sh--, but look at it, the teams that aren't trying — the teams that aren't paying and competing — are the teams getting no-hit.
"And then I, personally, I talk about this a lot: take the shift out of f---ing baseball. Like, I guarantee you if the shift isn't involved in those games, there's at least one hit in one of those games. I don't care about launch angle, I don't care about the sticky stuff, I don't care about any of this other sh--... I think the shift has fundamentally changed the way we play baseball. We shift everyone now. It doesn't matter if you're a power hitter, if you're a pull hitter, if you have some sort of tendency, we're gonna shift you into position."
So far, the league's BAbip (batting average on balls in play) is .289, which is the lowest figure since 1992, when it was .285. The constant shifting to plug up areas that used to be holes, depending on the batter, might have a little something to do with that.
"Of course as pitchers we get pissed every now and then, you give up a shift-beater, you beat a guy and he hits it into the four hole where they're shifted, you know, on the left side of the infield," Bradley said. "But forever you talk about driving the ball up the middle of the field, staying through the baseball, hitting it up the middle, and that is no longer a base hit. It is no longer a base hit.
"...We've gotten so analytical and so computer and so dialed in that the core value of the game is changing. The way the game is being played and everything is changing, and for me I think it starts with the shift."
Bradley is excited to see the results of rule changes in the minor leagues, specifically the rule in Double-A that aims to restrict shifting in the infields by stating that teams are required to "have a minimum of four players on the infield, each of whom must have both feet completely in front of the outer boundary of the infield dirt," (via Gabe Lacques of USA Today). If that helps to reward batters for hard-hit baseballs, Bradley, even as a pitcher, is all for it.
"...If you had to keep two guys on the infield and if you want to put your second baseman in right field you can still do that, you can still put him out there, but two guys have to stay on each side of second base. You can't have a guy cross over that middle line, and for me, you know, that's it," Bradley said. "You're seeing, like Don (Mattingly) said, it's tough to watch sometimes, man.
"Even me as a guy playing right now, there's a lot of games where guys are pissing on balls but they're right to someone. And it's cool, you know, when it's on your side, but it's also like, man, is this the game we're supposed to be playing? Is this the way the game was intended to be played right now?"
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