This season, Major League Baseball looks a little bit different.
Fans wanted to see less downtime and more action.
And so, MLB made some major changes.
The shift is restricted so that two infielders must be on either side of second base at all times, while also remaining on the infield dirt.
The bases are larger to prevent injuries and generate more action on the basepaths, and a pitch clock has been implemented to speed things up.
On Twitter, MLB updated fans on the new rules and how they have been impacting the overall pace of play, as well as the style of the game.
A look at how 2023 rule changes are impacting our game through the first two weeks of the regular season. pic.twitter.com/QuRS7KnYl3
— MLB (@MLB) April 13, 2023
The amount of time a game takes on average is down from last year.
At this point in the season last year, games were lasting three hours and seven minutes on average.
This year, they are lasting just two hours and 37 minutes on average.
The number of runs scored on average is also up.
At this point last season, games were seeing an average of eight runs scored.
This year, it is up to 9.4.
Batting averages are also up to .250 as opposed to .230 at this point in the 2022 season.
In terms of the larger bases, stolen base attempts have increased to 1.7 per nine-inning game.
The success rate is also up from 74 percent to 79.9 percent.
The new rules clearly are impacting the game and are giving most fans what they wanted to see out of baseball games in the future.
The rules are obviously working and creating a more entertaining style of game.
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