One of the best aspects of baseball is that games are untimed and the game is not over until one team has more runs after collecting 27 outs, barring extra innings. The Southeastern Conference, however, is trying to ruin the sanctity of the game by instilling shot clocks:
To keep the games moving, the SEC will use a pitch clock in a first-time experiment for the league.
Pitchers will be allotted 20 seconds between pitches with no runners on base. A clock mounted below the outfield video board at Regions Park in Hoover, Ala., will show the seconds ticking down. An umpire not on the field will operate the clock, according to the Tennessean. There will be no clock used when runners are on base.
If a pitcher takes too long, a ball will be added to the batter’s count. If a batter steps out of the box within five seconds of the clock expiring, a strike will added to the count. Also, teams will have one minute, 48 seconds to start a half-inning after the end of the previous one. If it starts late, a ball or strike will be imposed, depending on which team is at fault.
I should start by saying this is technically nothing new. Rafael Betancourt was called for two balks against the Tigers in July 2007 for taking longer than 20 seconds to pitch. The real problem lies with having actual clocks ticking down for everyone to see.
For the most obvious example, imagine a tied game in the late innings. With a shot clock, a pitcher can no longer take a quick, relaxing stroll around the mound to collect his thoughts, or call his catcher to the mound to decide on an approach in a big situation. A shot clock violation could wind up to be a crucial ball in eventually leading to a winning run. An umpire would never call a balk in this situation without a clock, but with one in plain view for everyone to see they’d have to call it every time.
Of course, a pitcher would be sure to never let the clock tick down to zero, but you can’t tell me you don’t see a problem with adding another mental element to an already mentally exhausting situation for a pitcher. At that point, all the pitcher should be focused on is the hitter — not a clock ticking down behind him, forcing him to hurry a pitch.
More of a stretch, but definitely realistic, it’d be easy for pitchers to freeze hitters, potentially leading to shot clock violation strikes. A quick pitcher usually takes about eight seconds between pitches. Say an average pitcher takes about 11-12 seconds. Usually, if a pitcher takes much more time than that, the hitter will call time and step out of the box because he’s been locked, uncomfortably, in his stance for 15 seconds while the pitcher tries to dick around with his head. Under the shot clock rules, a hitter could be forced to sit there for 15-16 seconds on every pitch and he can’t call time because the rule specifically states that a batter can’t step out of the box within five seconds of the clock expiring or else he gets a strike called against him. Advantage pitchers, every pitch.
The hitters could also pick up on this strategy and start to step out right at 14 seconds, since they can see the clock in center. If the pitcher is deadset on not throwing until 15 seconds have passed, and the hitter is deadset on not letting it get to 15 seconds without stepping out, the games would actually take longer as the two pricks play their game of shot clock chicken.
Now, the rules aren’t exactly clear. Is the clock stopped every time a pitch is released? Can a hitter call time and stop the shot clock before stepping out? These are all going to come up and unless there are more specific rules than what the USA Today printed, there are going to be A LOT of complaints during the SEC tournament, possibly screwing a team of its chances to advance to the World Series regionals, all just for a ridiculous experiment.
I’ll end with a message to fans, parents, whomever, bitching about baseball games dragging on for too long: Grow a pair and wear it. In the end, it should be all about the game of baseball, not your bed times or you saving 30 minutes of your day. The only clocks that should be involved in the game are radar guns and stop watches. SEC, you’re not gaining any points with this little ploy.
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