[MLB] The Stove is HOT

oldmanken

Regarding the sticky stuff, there was an interesting tid-bit in The Athletic article about rule changes about the baseball itself.

https://theathletic.com/2656683/2021/06/17/baseballs-next-challenge-will-be-the-battle-against-velocity-stark/

“Normalize” the baseball (six votes)

HOW IT COULD WORK: This is actually a jumble of several different ideas rolled into one category. But the common theme was this: Across the game, everyone wants a more consistent baseball. A baseball that is manufactured the same every year … that has a better, more natural tackiness, like the ball in Japan, that alleviates pitchers’ grip complaints … and a ball that has what one exec described as an “appropriate” amount of bounce and carry (as opposed to the 2019 Titleist level of bounce and carry).

WHY IT MIGHT BE AN ANSWER: This is complicated, because a better baseball could provide the solution to multiple problems. But a more standardized, naturally tacky surface would theoretically solve pitchers’ grip challenges in a sunscreen-free (and Spider Tack-free) world. So that needs to happen ASAP. Meanwhile, if everyone agrees we want more balls in play, wouldn’t one potential fix be a less bouncy baseball that makes the checked-swing, opposite-field home run a more improbable dream?

“For years, there’s been talk in tennis about going back to wood rackets or something similar, because the serve has become so overwhelming,” said one exec. “So much of men’s tennis is: You hit a serve. It’s either an ace or a weak return, and the server comes to the net and the point is over. So can we do something with the baseball that affects the way it moves and how it spins? I’m not a physics major. But that’s an area I would like to see explored.”

I've italicized it above, but the comment about the Japanese baseball being more naturally tacky has me wondering why the hell they don't use the same kind of surface here in MLB?

DouglasDanger

My theory is MLB is trying to figure out how to increase TV viewership to increase profits

Home runs make for good TV

It's very hard to make pitchers duels and small ball exciting on a live TV broadcast

I'm sure it could be done in the editing room, but even with all kinds of cameras all over the stadium and some insanely talented people working the broadcasts today, there isn't much you can do to make super pitchers throwing near shutouts exciting

admanb

That's not true, though. Consistent tension and run generating plays are a lot more exciting than occasionally hitting a ball real hard.

I think it's more likely they just want more offense, but don't know how to do that without swinging things towards the true outcomes.