Tonight (and for a while) NFL > MLB

There were 26,313 more pitches thrown in 2018 (724,447) than in 1998 (698,134). About 11 more pitches per game.

Percentage of strikes that are foul balls is the highest since the data was recorded starting in 1988. Batters sit on two strikes forever.

And batters are striking out twice as often as they were in 1981.

 

True, but it has also eliminated the manager running out of the dugout, yelling and kicking dirt at the ump for about five minutes, and then getting tossed. It was great theatre but also held up the game. Close play now? Manager hears if the ump got it right or wrong. If he got it right, which is probably 85 percent of the time, the game continues along. If he got it wrong, replay generally takes less than a minute. All the replays don't slow the game down as much as one old-fashioned, base-throwing, spittle-filled rant.

 

Good counterpoint.

No, it wasn't. It was terrible.


About the only positive for replay is that it has eliminated the asshat manager histrionics.

 

Eleven more pitches per game doesn't seem like a great effect. Essentially, two to four more batters? I tried poking around the other day and couldn't find a satisfactory answer, but what's the "run time" of today's baseball games, minus commercials, vs. years past? I kind of assume it's not that far off. (I think that was a point Gee made much earlier in this thread.)

 

The frigging Sunday Night Football pregame show, with Tiroco and the skeleton of Tony Dungy, almost doubled the WS rating sunday night

 

College football is a slog to watch. Change to the NFL rule and don’t stop the clock on every first down.

 

I don't know. There are times when TV will show a dozen or more camera shots BETWEEN pitches (fans, manager, fans, pitcher, batter, fans, manager, etc.) during really tense moments.

That 1960 World Series Game 7 is the gold standard for "run time." 19 runs, 24 hits, nine pitchers used . . . 2 hours and 36 minutes total.

 

I've wondered why teams don't order some of their pitchers (who don't have the success to resist advice) to just hurry up their pace. Couldn't hurt and make put the batters off balance.

 

I'm wondering when they'll finally add a pitch clock at the major league level. They've had it in the minors for a few years, so before long there ought to be a generation of pitchers who have been trained to work faster even if they're not on a clock.

 

Boobs, horrifically bad calls, presidents getting booed ... this World Series is boring?