The Slanch Report

In one of the more absurd rule changes I have ever heard of, I came across this item from Baseball America’s Jim Callis:

The International Baseball Federation has adopted a speed-up rule that will be used in international competition, starting with the Beijing Olympics. Beginning in the 11th inning, teams will open each frame with runners on first and second base. Additionally, to start the 11th inning, clubs can decide where they want to begin in the batting order (though they won’t be able to further reset the order in later innings).

“The upcoming Beijing Olympic competition may be our last unless we are successful in adding the sport back to the Olympic program for the 2016 Games,” IBAF president Dr. Harvey W. Schiller said. “We must demonstrate to the International Olympic Committee not only does our game belong alongside the other great sports of the world, but our sport is manageable from a television and operational standpoint.”

This has to be one of the most asinine rule changes ever. Also, it doesn’t seem like it will matter, as after this year baseball will no longer be an Olympic sport. I simply don’t understand how anyone could do something like this and think of it as baseball. Now, I’m all for making the sport more marketable and popular worldwide, but this is simply changing the game for the worse and makes no sense. This is supposed to be top-line competition, not Little League. Wait, I take that back, even Little League wouldn’t be this stupid. It’s one thing to have a mercy rule in international competition, which is also stupid, but arbitrarily putting men on base and then allowing you to hit whomever you like is just an awful affront to the game.

Ugh.