How I would fix Major League Baseball

Here’s a Friday Question that became an entire post.  Warning:  It’s about baseball.

KLAC Guy asks:

I have been reading comments by Don Mattingly and Reggie Jackson about their dissatisfaction with the way baseball is played today. Both said that many of today’s games are unwatchable due to the lack of offense and the high number of strikeouts. Yankees play by play announcer, Michael Kay, talks about it often on his talk show. If you were baseball’s commissioner, what changes would you make to make the games more entertaining?

Okay, some of these are radical.

First, I’d eliminate the shift. 

I’d eliminate walk-up music.  Get in there and hit.

I’d install a pitch clock.  It works in the minors.  Get the ball and throw it.  And if you’re a hitter, stay in the box and hit.  No more “Human rain delays.” 

With two strikes, you get two foul balls.  Any more than two and it’s a strike out.  No more fouling off pitch after pitch. 

An announcer friend made this suggestion that I would use.   With a runner on first you get one throw over there.  You may say that gives the runner an unfair advantage.  If you think he’s going to steal, pitch out.  There were teams last year who never needed to pitch out once. 

You want fewer home runs?   Move fences back.  That also means outfielders have to cover more ground.  More balls might drop in for singles and doubles. 

Eliminate the stupid extra-inning rule where a runner starts at second base.  Two sacrifices and the runner could score.  That’s an unearned win in my book. 

Challenges must take no more than three minutes.  And if that doesn’t work, eliminate challenges.  I’d rather see arguments in front of the fans than everyone sitting around for ten minutes while umpires review replays in New York. 

Lose one commercial break per half inning.  Charge more for the commercials to make up the difference. 

If a pitcher warms up to begin an inning he has to face at least one batter.  None of this Tony LaRussa shit where a pitcher warms up, then a pinch-hitter is announced, and he pulls the pitcher to bring in someone else, thus causing another three to four minute delay. 

Study analytics before the game all you want, but during the game, no note cards. 

No seven-inning double headers.  This is the fucking big leagues.  

I would fire Angel Hernandez, an absolute disgrace of an umpire.

A quicker hook for pitchers who throw at a batter on purpose.  And an automatic one game suspension.  Pitchers throw at 100 miles an hour now.  They could really kill someone.  Managers get ejected too.  This also eliminates a number of brawls through the course of the season.  

Along those same lines, any player who it is determined willfully tried to injure another (e.g. spikes up) get suspended for at least a week or more if it’s a repeat offense.  Ty Cobb is dead. 

I know.  I’d be a hard-ass commissioner and the owners and players would be pissed at me.  But the games would zip along and there would be way more action and you’d get home at a decent time.    Unfortunately, no one has asked me to be the commissioner.