With Spring Training opening up for all 30 teams this week, the MLB and MLBPA have discussed a bevy of changes to the sport that may potentially come into effect for the 2019 season or in years ahead.
Among them include the addition of the designated hitter in the National League, a three-batter minimum for pitchers and a 20-second pitch clock.
A single day trade deadline before the All-Star Break is also being pondered, which would prohibit waiver acquisitions in August.
Another suggestion that the MLBPA has floated around is bringing back Major League contracts as a form of enticement to multi-sport athletes such as Oakland Athletics 2018 Draft pick, Oklahoma quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray, via Jeff Passan of ESPN/a>:
In the wake of Oakland Athletics first-round pick Kyler Murray potentially leaving behind baseball to pursue an NFL career after a Heisman Trophy-winning season, the union also suggested the idea of bringing back the major league contract as an enticement for two-sport athletes to stick with baseball, sources said.
As it currently stands, players that are drafted out of high school and college are permitted to only sign Minor League contracts with the organization that selects them.
Murray, who is pegged by many pundits as a potential first-round draft pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, has ultimately chosen to pursue a career in football. Murray was taken by the Athletics with the ninth overall pick in the 2018 MLB Draft.
The hope with the proposed change would be to ensure a quicker or more secure path to the Majors if and when another athlete faces a similar decision.
