How the MLB pitch clock became a problem for batters

Between pitches, I fidget with my batting gloves. Scrawling in the dirt with a baseball bat tip. Pacing around the batter’s box, perhaps meditating.

Major League Baseball batters used to have all the time in the world to practice such rituals before facing pitchers.

However, the league’s new pitch clock rules, implemented this year to speed up a game that can last three hours, will result in another unintended casualty: eccentric batter routines.

“It’s called a pitch timer, and because of that, I think most people thought about how it affects the pitcher when they announced it,” MLB.com national reporter Anthony Castrovince told CNN.

As spring training began, the new rule appeared to be accomplishing its goal of shortening games. However, baseball experts began to recognize that the burden of the clock may be more of an adjustment for batters than pitchers.

“The batters not getting as much time as they were used to was one of those things that snuck up on everybody involved because we were so focused on the pitchers,” CNN’s Neil Paine, acting sports editor at FiveThirtyEight, said. “We didn’t spend as much time thinking about the batters, and as it turns out, the batters have had to make just as much of an adjustment as the pitchers.”

According to the new pitch clock rules, a pitcher has 15 seconds to begin the motion to throw the ball when the bases are empty and 20 seconds when runners are on base. If he does not complete this task in time, he will be charged with a ball. The batter, on the other hand, must be ready to go in the batter’s box. With eight seconds left on the clock, he must be facing and looking at the pitcher. If he does not, he will be charged with a strike. Early in spring training, the consequences were on full display.

It was the bottom of the ninth inning, the bases were loaded, there was a full count, and the score was tied.

Cal Conley of the Atlanta Braves had a chance to win his team’s game against the Boston Red Sox. With the pitch clock winding down, the umpire called a time violation, and Conley proceeded to first base, apparently assuming that the pitcher had broken the new rule.

Only Conley was called out because he was not ready in the batter’s box with eight seconds remaining on the pitch clock. The game ended when the umpire called a strike.

Much of the batter’s and pitcher’s slow build to the pitch can be attributed to game strategy – any attempt to disrupt the opposing team’s flow. However, with the new pitch rules, the mind games will have to be accelerated.

“It’ll be a faster chess match.” I’ve heard some backlash from fans as a result of this. “They’ll miss the pitcher staring down the batter and vice versa,” Castrovince said.

Many batters will have to adjust their superstitions and routines as they enter the batter’s box, keeping an eye on the new clock.

“Putting in that pitch clock and the rules that go with it has been solely responsible for shaving off 25 minutes of kind of dead time off a baseball game,” Paine said. “I think that’s probably still a net positive, but you do lose a little bit of that other stuff.”

CNN identified four current and former players who had such eccentric routines and attempted to recreate their at-bat movements to see if they would violate the new clock. Each reenactment depicts a scenario with the bases empty, with a total of 15 seconds allowed. With eight seconds to go, the batter should be ready.

CNN employees volunteered to perform the moves to the best of their abilities. Here’s what we discovered:

Garciaparra, Nomar

Garciaparra is so well-known for obsessively adjusting his batting gloves that MLB compiled a video of his pre-bat routines that included this iconic move.

The video below shows the retired Boston Red Sox player adjusting his gloves on both hands several times, double tapping his left and then right toes on the dirt, and taking a few casual swings with his bat before centering himself to the pitcher.

Castrovince believes that reducing this should not be too difficult.

“Hopefully, most players understand that it’s not necessary to adjust your batting gloves when you didn’t even swing at the last pitch and nothing has changed,” he joked.

Garciaparra spent roughly 10 seconds getting ready for the pitch in this case, which is 2 seconds too long under the new rules. He would have received a strike.

Sandoval, Pablo

Sandoval, then a San Francisco Giants player, demonstrated several moves before entering the batter’s box during a game on June 13, 2014. Dillydallying included tapping the top of the bat to his toes, scribbling in the dirt, adjusting his gloves, and swiping his shoulder, among other things.

“There’s less room for individuality in terms of your little routines and motions,” Paine said, “but it’s probably worth it in terms of the speeding up effect.”

Sandoval spent more than 16 seconds getting ready for the pitch in this case, which is at least 6 seconds too long under the new rules. He would have received a strike.

Trea Turner is an actress.

Turner, a former Washington Nationals all-star, has demonstrated the ability to take his time getting ready for a hit. Turner takes some leisurely swings, taps the top of his bat over home plate, and rocks a few times before signaling he’s ready for the pitch in an October 2019 game against the Houston Astros.

Turner spent approximately 14 seconds getting ready for the pitch in this case, which is 6 seconds too long under the new rules. He would have received a strike.

J.D. Martinez

Martinez, with all of his pre-pitch rituals at the plate, was also given the mash-up video treatment.

Martinez, a former Boston Red Sox player, taps the bat to his heels and then puffs his chest up to the sky with his arms by his sides before inching up to the plate and swaying into his stance in one particularly lengthy routine.

Martinez spent more than 16 seconds getting ready for the pitch in this case, which is at least 6 seconds too long under the new rules. He would have received a strike.

The primary goal of the new pitch clock rules is to speed up the game, and it appears to be working: according to The Athletic, the average spring training game was 2 hours and 36 minutes, down from 3 hours and 1 minute last spring.

It may also be more entertaining for viewers who want more action. During spring training, Bovoda, a sports betting company, introduced prop bets for pitch clock violations.

Pat Morrow, Bovada’s Head Oddsmaker, told CNN that this was added to the site because of the pitch clock violation.

“It’s not just having the usual stuff that people can wager on… it’s the conversation starter questions around those sports: what’s happening in those sports that keep them relevant, even when the first pitch of the season hasn’t yet,” Morrow said.

This season, Morrow anticipates increased engagement on the site during live games. The big question is whether the rules attract new fans who might be more interested in watching a shorter sporting event.

“While it’s great for baseball that they’ve cut that 25 minutes off, it’s like the difference between a Christopher Nolan film and a regular movie,” Paine explained.