Expect Change Before Bud Departs

While it may be below 45 degrees throughout most of the country, we are just around the corner from the start of Spring Training. And while this off-season was much like all off-seasons of the past decade (with the biggest names headed to the biggest markets) that does not mean that big changes aren’t coming.

Shortly after the conclusion of World Series, Commissioner Bud Selig appointed a 14-man committee to improve some of the issues associated with the sport. In the words of Mr. Selig "There will be sacred cows". This could mean many things, it could also be white noise. But over the last two decades Selig has definitely been the most liberal commissioner the game has ever seen (adding the Wild Card to the post-season, making the All-Star game more important than it should be). He has said that following the 2012 season he will step down as the head of MLB and I fully anticipate him making a splash before he cleans out his office. This leaves the door open for a dramatic change to the way we watch baseball.

One of the most obvious topics I expect to be addressed is the extent of the use of instant replay. Using replay for home runs and nothing else is just lazy. The question is how much of the game should it effect? Review of balls landing fair or foul in play seems like a no-brainer. It could work like football, indisputable evidence would be needed to overturn a call. If the ball is originally called foul and overturned to fair, the batter is sent to second base like it were a ground rule double. It could extend to whether or not base runners beat throws from fielders. The only area of the game I do not see being effected is balls and strikes. You cannot leave these calls up to a machine. Yes, every umpire seems to have his own strike zone. But consistency is all that batters and pitchers seek and if calls are consistent throughout a game there is no reason to remove this human element from the game.

Another part of the game I expect to be looked at is the designated hitter. I don’t consider myself too much of a baseball purist and at the same time im not one of these new-school stat guys more obsessed with numbers like VORP and OPS than the obvious skills you can see by watching the games. Basically I’m pretty moderate when it comes to my thoughts of the game but in my opinion having a DH in both leagues would be a highly unintelligent decision. First of all, it completely takes away the need for a manager on any ball club (not that they are entirely necessary to begin with). In American League games, the line-up cards are submitted and then the manager hopes to sit quietly until the 6^th or 7^th inning before having to make a pitching change. A pinch-hitter may be used late in the game for match-up purposes and if the game is close you might see a pinch runner. Point is, other than pitching changes American League managers don’t do that much. National League managers on the other hand must make decisions that could alter the course of the game from the 5^th inning on. His pitcher could be throwing lights out but in a close game and an opportunity to score runs he may opt to use a pinch hitter and put the game in the hands of his bullpen. Again, I’m far from a purist, but these are the situations that the game was meant to be played with. Yes you can bring in a hot bat off the bench, but as a result you lose your starting pitcher, do you take the chance? Unfortunately the chances of the DH disappearing entirely are not likely. The players union would never permit a decision that would cost them the final years of their careers (think Matsui, Guerrero, Big Papi, Hafner’s avatar). It is kind of senseless to play both styles in the World Series depending on whether the NL or AL team is at home. It is a huge disadvantage to the visitor. Some of these un-athletic DH’s are the centerpiece of their teams offense. So if they reach the games highest stage they are resorted to nothing more than a pinch hitter. Is it there fault they cannot play the field? Absolutely! But since rookie ball they have been groomed to be a slugger and nothing else. Expect Bud and friends to look for a way to make this all sensible.

These are the big two issues that are sure to be addressed. As for the others, they could go a number of ways. Perhaps less off days during the post-season. Maybe the All-Star game will return to nothing more than exhibition status. Could the idea of contraction be brought back to life? With no plans for new stadiums in Oakland and Tampa Bay it is not inconceivable to see the league be reduced to 28 teams (which would increase the level of play everywhere else). These teams could also be relocated, which Selig would prefer of these two options. Ol’ Dirty Bud is not afraid to have a team located in Las Vegas (as shown when he didn’t stop Marlins officials from speaking with representatives in Sin City). There are not many unconquered territories in the United States for MLB teams. The idea of the San Antonio A’s or the New Orleans Rays doesn’t excite me enough to grab a ticket whenever they come to town. However the San Juan Diablos or the Mexico City Leñadors (Lumberjacks in Spanish), now that would move the meter for me.

Fact is, in the next three seasons we can expect some changes, big or small, to happen in MLB. The commission is made up of smart baseball people (La Russa, Torre, Leyland, Scioscia to name a few) but it is going to take some unconventional thinking to truly make any impact and attract a much needed young audience. The commish wants to go out with a move swaying him closer to Rozelle and further from Bettman. We’re all hoping Ol’ Dirty Bud doesn’t make any decisions liquored up and full of brats like he did when he ended the 2002 All-Star Game in his home town Milwaukee. What? You thought he knew what he was doing?