Opinion, From Where I Sit: The MLB Pitch Clock Update

Just after one season since the implementation of the pitch clock into the Major League Baseball (MLB), the league has already tweaked the rule for the 2024 season.   Last season, pitchers had 15 seconds to throw their pitch whenever the bases were empty and 20 seconds with a runner on base which cut the game time by almost 30 minutes.  

 However, the MLB is looking to speed up the game even more. 

 They decided to reduce the amount of time with runners on base by two seconds, so pitchers now have 18 seconds compared to original 20.  This is expected to shave roughly five more minutes off the game. 

I previously wrote about the pitch clock when it was first implemented last year and I was in favor of this rule change. This prompted me to watch more baseball from the comfort of my home. Those 30 minutes really made a huge difference in the “fun factor” of the game.  

 Personally, I thought that made the game the perfect length. It wasn’t too long where I grew uninterested in the game and it also wasn’t too short where I was yearning for more. But as players became accustomed to the clock, the game time began to increase. 

 According to The Athletic, the average game time was 2 hours and 36 minutes towards the beginning of the 2023 season. It rose to 2 hours and 44 minutes in Sept. The MLB plans this two second change will reduce the time yet again, although, I have a strong feeling that there will be a similar trend this season.  

 Sure, the games will likely finish quicker during the first few months of the 2024 season because they have to acclimate to the change again. But what will happen as players become used to the new clock? I would guess that the game time would slowly begin to increase throughout the season, like it did in 2023. 

 If this is the case, the league will likely continue tweaking the pitch clock which could go on for multiple seasons until they find a permanent solution for this issue. Many members a part of the MLB Player Association (MLBPA) think this newest change might be too soon.  The Executive Director of the MLBPA, Tony Clark, issued a statement during the offseason mentioning that the players were strongly against it. 

“Players strongly feel that, following last season’s profound changes to the fundamental rules of the game, immediate additional changes are unnecessary and offer no meaningful benefits to fans, Players, or the competition on the field,” he said.  Instead, it said the league should focus on gathering data to fully understand the health, safety, and injury impacts the time reduction has on the pitchers. 

 The MLBPA board consists of six owners, four players and one umpire so the players won’t always get to implement certain rule changes that might be beneficial to them. 

 Anyway, I am interested to see what the future of the pitch clock will be and only time will tell. 

 

 Story By:  Carlin Whalen (cjw6426@psu.edu)