Pitching Ninja helps recap a wild first weekend
Quicker games! More scoring! Oh my, did baseball get something right for a change?
The sample size may be small, but it appears after MLB’s opening weekend that the offseason adjustments – from the pitch clock to banning the defensive shift, limiting first base throw-overs to larger bases and more – are working as intended. Game times were reduced league wide by over 30 minutes, which is remarkable.
Granted, that was not the case locally as the Red Sox had two games surpass the three-hour mark, but that happens with walks and scoring. And speaking of baserunners, batting average and stolen bases were up markedly as well, a good sign that MLB’s focus on quicker games, more action and more runs is working early on. Very encouraging indeed.
Best of all, the pitch clock violations weren’t a total drag, averaging fewer than one per game. There’s no standard to compare it to since it’s a new rule for 2023. Should the numbers lay out similarly over the next few weeks and all season long, perhaps these changes could be here to stay. It would be interesting to see if the Red Sox remain at the top of the game duration category…a sign they’re either getting many men on or allowing too many men on base, or both. Time will tell there for sure.
Best not arrive too late to the old ballpark - you might miss some action, or more of the game than you used to!
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