Opinion | Here’s how the Blue Jays are planning on taking advantage of MLB’s new pace of play rules

DUNEDIN, Fla.—What’s old is new again for Major League Baseball as the sport aims to return to its roots with a series of rules changes designed to shorten game times and create a more level playing field for all 30 teams.

Bigger bases, a pitch clock, a ban on defensive shifts and limits how many times pitchers can step off the mound are just a few of the changes that will impact how the game is played. There will also be a more balanced schedule and stricter enforcement of pre-existing rules.

The technology being used to implement some of these changes is new, but the style of play it’s intended to create certainly isn’t. MLB is looking for shorter games with less dead time between action, more balls put in play and increased aggressiveness on the basepaths.

The point isn’t to turn back the clock a half century or more. Power and launch angles are being prioritized like never before, and that seems unlikely to change. But the hope is a return to an early 2000s style when the sport featured a blend of approaches instead of today’s three true outcomes: Walks, strikeouts and home runs.

“This is probably one of the biggest years of change that we’ve had in the game for quite some time,” MLB chief operations and strategy officer Chris Marinak said from TD Ballpark in Dunedin, where he made a presentation explaining the new rules and the impact they are expected to have on the upcoming season.

The Blue Jays seem well-equipped to handle the changes. The recent additions of Whit Merrifield, Kevin Kiermaier and Daulton Varsho bring an element of speed the Jays haven’t possessed in recent years outside of Bo Bichette. That group should be able to leverage the bigger bases, which are three inches longer on each side, and limit of two pick-off attempts per at-bat into a more aggressive running game.

A ban on the shift means all infield defenders need to have both feet on the dirt and there must be two men on each side of second until a pitch is thrown. There is no such restriction on outfielders because MLB believes teams assume more risk moving them around. Putting Bichette on the right side of second, for example, might cost the Jays a single. Putting Varsho on the right side leaves left field wide open for extra-base hits.

Still, it’s safe to assume that at some point the Jays will experiment with a non-traditional approach. Varsho, Kiermaier and George Springer have all played centre and have the ability to cover a lot of ground. That means the Jays are better positioned to get creative than they were last year when subpar defenders Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Teoscar Hernandez were still around.

“We have three very, very capable defenders in the outfield on any given night,” Jays manager John Schneider said. “I think that really comes down to a select handful of hitters that you would really try to target, if that’s even an opportunity.

“A two-man outfield sounds funny, but like anything, you’re working around the strengths of your roster, and if there’s an opportunity that we think can help us, based on what their skillset is, we’re going to look to do it.”

In other words, lefty batters who don’t run well might not be out of the woods, but over all, there won’t be nearly as much shifting as there was before. Defending teams that violate the ban will be charged with an automatic ball and if the pitch gets put in play, the batting team will have the option of accepting or declining the penalty based on the outcome.

The pitch clock — 15 seconds with the bases empty and 20 seconds with a runner on — is intended to improve pace of play. Per MLB, when the clock was used in the minors last season, the average game time dropped from three hours and three minutes to two hours and 38 minutes. In 2022, MLB games were on average three hours and seven minutes.

“Fans have said they want two main things,” said Joe Martinez, a former minor-league pitcher who is now MLB’s vice president of on-field strategy. “One is a crisper pace of play … Our fans are saying 2:30 was kind of the ideal game time, I’m not sure that’s entirely reachable but it’s a good goal to have.

“The other thing that fans have said they want is more action. They want to see more events that involve player athleticism. More doubles, more triples, more stolen base attempts, great defensive plays. Things we were seeing come out of the game in many different ways.”

While the new rules are intended to bring those elements back, there will be a learning curve. According to an MLB poll, 90 per cent of minor-league players adjusted to the new rules within a month. That’s about the same length as the Grapefruit League season and for guys who take longer, their number of violations should diminish as the year goes on.

Some might argue a slow pace is part of baseball’s charm, but few find enjoyment in seeing a batter step out between every pitch. They take no pleasure in watching a pitcher catch the ball and take a slow walk around the grass before getting back on the rubber. Nobody is clamouring for more pick-off attempts.

MLB made minor adjustments in the past to speed things up such as limiting mound visits and using Pitchcom technology to signal pitches, but these are the most drastic changes the sport has made in quite some time, and most are long overdue.

Once the regular-season gets underway, the new rules should prove to be well-liked by fans. They also figure to be just as popular with the new-look Jays because they spent the off-season getting faster and more athletic, while also loading up on left-handed bats.

Those attributes seem like a perfect fit for the new MLB. And hey, a more balanced schedule with fewer games against teams in the powerful AL East won’t hurt either.

SHARE: