Major League Baseball is currently undergoing an era of change as it tries to revamp the sport for the modern age with rule changes and additions.
The results have been very promising as MLB saw national viewership increase across ESPN, FS1 and MLB Network, particularly in the extremely important age 18-34 demographic that saw double digit growth.
Attendance during the 2024 season reached a seven-year high, with a total of 71,348,366, marking a 1% increase over last year’s total. Shorter game times, which are a result of pace of play rule changes beginning in 2023, have driven increases in weekday attendance by 13% since the 2022 season.
MLB currently has other rule changes in various stages of development, which includes an automated ball-strike challenge system and potential innings requirement for starting pitchers.
Now there is apparently another idea that is gaining steam in the form of allowing teams to utilize a golden at-bat, according to Jayson Stark of the Athletic:
“There are a variety of (rule change ideas) that are being talked about out there,” Manfred said. “One of them — there was a little buzz around it at an owners’ meeting — was the idea of a Golden At-Bat.”
There are variations on how a golden at-bat rule would be implemented, but it would fundamentally change the game of baseball as it is currently known more than any other rule change made in the past few years:
• Each team gets to pick one at-bat — at any point in the game, but only once — to play its Golden AB card. So would it save that card for The Juan Soto Moment? Or would it play it in the second inning, with the bases loaded and a chance to blow up a game? Strategy alert!
• Or there’s this option: Each team gets one Golden AB per game — except only in the seventh inning or later.
• Or there’s the variation I’d vote for — where only a team that is trailing (or tied) in the ninth or later gets to use a Golden AB. I’m a fan of less is more, and two Golden ABs every game (one per team) might be overkill.
The changes MLB has made in recent years were met with some skepticism and hesitation, but ultimately had logical sense behind them and did not alter the game at its core. The two potential rule changes in development are a little more radical but still make sense within the framework of the sport.
Of the three possible rule changes that MLB has made public knowledge, the golden at-bat seems to be the least likely. It is seemingly a lower priority than the innings minimum for starting pitchers which is in the extremely early stages of the process.
ABS has best chance to become MLB’s newest rule change
Of all the possible rule changes being brainstormed, the ABS challenge system is the furthest along in development and could see testing in MLB by Spring Training before a decision is ultimately made.
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