Major League Baseball made changes to a couple of on-field rules prior to the 2014 season and after a month of play, those changes are causing a bit of havoc for managers, players and umpires alike. Now, the league has decided to change a couple of rules either back to their original state or to an edited state.
Rules changed for the 2014 season include instant replay, home plate collisions and the transfer rule. Towards the end of April, the Office of the Commissioner announced that the new transfer rule would be reverted back to the original, effective immediately. We examine the changes to the rules and the issues they have caused so far this season.
Instant Replay Expansion
One of the biggest changes made by Major League Baseball prior to the season was that of expanding instant replay. In previous seasons, managers were allowed to suggest a review of a ball that may or may not have been a home run. Now, each manager is permitted one challenge per game prior to the seventh inning. The manager is allowed to challenge any number of calls involved in one play on the field using just one challenge.
If the manager gets the call right, they are given one more challenge for the remainder of the game. If the call goes against the manager, the team is not permitted to challenge any further calls. Crew chiefs are allowed to review any call they deem necessary throughout the course of a game. The reviews are conducted by a team in New York, which makes the final decision and relays that info to the umpiring crew.
So far, with a little more than one month of games in the books, the reviews on the expanded instant replay system are mixed. Quite a few managers and players have spoken out against the system after reviews overturned calls that should not have happened. One such game involved the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees.
In a Sunday night game, Francisco Cervelli grounded into an inning-ending double play. Yankees manager Joe Girardi challenged the play at first and it was overturned, allowing Brian McCann to score, increasing the Yankee lead to 3-1. They won 3-2. None of the camera views available provided enough evidence to overturn the call.
Major League Baseball later said that a call from another Yankee-Red Sox game in that series should have been called differently, but the league did not have enough video angles to make the correct call. That is very disconcerting for teams that could be losing challenges during the stretch run, effectively costing them games and possible playoff spots.
Red Sox manager John Farrell became the first manager in the league to be ejected for arguing a call overturned by replay in the Cervelli game.
In an interview with Gorden Edes, of ESPN Boston, following the game, Farrell said the following:
“We felt that it was clear that the replay was inconclusive,” Farrell said, “and the frustrating part is that when this was rolled out and explained to us, particularly on the throw received by the first baseman, we were instructed when the ball enters the glove — and not that it has to hit the back of the glove — is where the out is deemed complete.
“At the same time, any angle that we looked at, we couldn’t tell whether [Cervelli’s] foot was on the bag behind Mike Napoli’s leg, so where this became conclusive is a hard pill to swallow. And on the heels of yesterday, it’s hard to have any faith in the system, to be honest with you.”
In a Nationals-Braves game, Nate McLouth beat out a bunt single to first. McLouth was called out at first, but Nats manager Matt Williams challenged the call. After four minutes of video review, the call was upheld. McLouth was still out and the Nats failed to score in an inning that they should have had runners on first and second with zero outs. It also prevented Williams from challenging a call later in the game that would have given the Nats defense two outs.
After the game, Williams told the Washington Post’s James Wager the following:
“I’m extremely frustrated by the process at this point… I don’t know how Nate is out if they have the same feed that we have, so that’s frustrating because I thought he was safe. We’ve looked at it 100 times since then, and we believe he was safe. And if that is a safe call, then we maintain our challenge.”
One can only hope that MLB gets the replay thing figured out before these challenges start costing teams too many wins and possible chances at playoff spots. If these issues persist in August and September, how can managers have faith in the system during the post-season.
Home Plate Collisions
With the start of the 2014 season, MLB also decided to get rid of home plate collisions. The new rule is an experimental rule and will be looked at throughout the season. Not that we don’t want the catchers and the runners to be safe, but this rule has already caused some confusion during games.
The new rule, right from the league, is as follows:
– Runners cannot run out of a direct path to the plate in order to contact a catcher or another player blocking the plate. If this occurs, the umpire can call the runner out automatically no matter if the player blocking the plate has possession of the ball or not.
– Catcher are not permitted to block the plate if he does not have possession of the ball. Runners can be called safe by the umpire if the catcher blocks his path to the plate without possession of the baseball.
– Umpires have discretion when making home plate calls based on whether or not the runner tried to access the plate or lowered his shoulder into the catcher.
– There is no requirement of runners to slide.
– This new rule is subject to review in the expanded replay system for 2014.
Prior to the season, MLBPA executive director Tony Clark told MLB.com the following:
“There is nothing more sacred in the game than home plate, and baserunners want to do all they can to score a run, while catchers want to do their best to defend the plate — in many cases, at all costs. Therefore, as one might imagine, the issue of home-plate collisions is one that generates spirited debate among the players. Because of this, coming up with a rule change that allows both the runner and catcher a fair and equal opportunity to score and defend was our mandate.
“We believe the new experimental rule allows for the play at the plate to retain its place as one of the most exciting plays in the game while providing an increased level of protection to both the runner and the catcher. We will monitor the rule closely this season before discussing with the Commissioner’s Office whether the rule should become permanent.”
The rule has caused some confusion for umpires, players and managers alike right from the outset. Catchers do not know what is legal when it comes to blocking the plate and what is illegal. Runners also are not sure if they should continue on their path towards the plate if a catcher is blocking it without the ball, or attempt to run around the catcher.
It is possible that this rule is tweaked a bit before this season comes to an end, but the league has yet to announce any changes.
This is what MLB is hoping to avoid with the new collision rules outside of just keeping players safe from injury. Video courtesy of MLB.com.
Transfer Rule
MLB changed its transfer rule prior to the season due to the increase of instant replay. The transfer rule was changed to requiring a player to transfer the ball from their glove to their throwing hand successfully during double plays, force plays and tag plays or risk losing the out.
Now, the league has reverted back to the original rule due to issues with interpretations of the rule during instant replay reviews. The old rule says that the player must have control of the ball while it is in the glove, but when intentionally opening the glove to transfer, the player can drop the ball without risking the loss of the out recorded.
The rule was reverted back to its original state towards the end of April by the commissioner’s office and the Playing Rules Committee. According to the committee,
“A legal catch has occurred … if the fielder had complete control over the ball in his glove, but drops the ball after intentionally opening his glove to make the transfer to his throwing hand.”
“There is no requirement that the fielder successfully remove the ball from his glove in order for it be ruled a catch,” the committee said. “If the fielder drops the ball while attempting to remove it to make a throw, the umpires should rule that the ball had been caught, provided that the fielder had secured it in his glove before attempting the transfer.”
The committee concluded with, “the umpires will continue to use their judgment as to whether the fielder had complete control over the ball before the transfer.”
This is one rule that should have never been messed with from the start. All it did was cause more confusion for umpires, players and managers on the field. If the league is trying to cut down on the time it takes to play a Major League game, why would it change rules that could be open to further interpretation? This only leads to more replay challenges and more time spent looking at video.
Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons
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Jim is the creator and editor of At the Dish, Cinn City Sports, Life with Tony and Enzo and owner of JAVFreelancing. He coached baseball for five years, three at his former high school (Holy Cross in Delran, NJ) and two at prominent Division III program Rowan University in Glassboro, NJ as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. He has worked for the Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, NJ; Metro Networks in Bala Cynwyd, PA; and was the play-by-play announcer for the Camden Riversharks of the Independent Atlantic League of Professional Baseball for two seasons (2007-2008) on Rowan Radio 89.7 WGLS-FM, the student-run radio station at Rowan University. Jim earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications and minor in Journalism from Rowan University in 2008. While in school he was the Assistant Sports Director at WGLS for two years and the Sports Director for one year. He also covered the football, baseball, softball and both basketball teams for the school newspaper 'The Whit.' Jim lives in New Jersey with his wife Nicole, sons Tony and Enzo and dog Phoebe. He can be reached at jimvassallo@mlbdrafts.com.
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