Arizona Fall League's six experimental rules. Two are dumb, the rest ineffective.

You should read the Arizona Fall League (AFL) stuff yourself and not rely on someone's interpretation.  Here is the link.

My comments:

01. 20-second Rule

modified version of Rule 8.04 ... Rule 8.04 requires the pitcher to deliver the ball to the batter within 12 seconds after he receives the ball with the bases unoccupied ... A pitcher shall be allowed 20 seconds to throw each pitch.
__________________________________

Say what?  20 is 66% longer than 12.  Why increase the time?

02. Batter's Box Rule

The batter shall keep at least one foot in the batter's box ...
__________________________________

I watched a little of one of these experimental AFL games.  Even there the batters mindlessly move one foot either out of the box or away from the plate.  Why?  Who does that in batting practice?  Who did that 20 years ago?  At least the batter is not walking away, turning his back to the plate without asking for or being granted time out as happens in the Major Baseball League (MBL) games.

03. No-Pitch Intentional Walks

04. 2:05 Inning Break Clock

Who cares?  Intentional Walks do not make games 3.5 hours.  Inning breaks are a function of TV commercials.  Even if a minute is added in nationally televised games as a friend who still attends says, that's only about 20 minutes per game.  No one expects baseball action during a TV commercial.  What's killing baseball is lack of action when the players are on the field but are jerking around.

05. 2:30 Pitching Change Break Clock

Why are there breaks to substitute players?  Change on the fly like football and basketball, for pitchers, batters and fielders.  No warm up time.

06. Three "Time Out" Limit

three "Time Out" conferences per game (including extra innings) ... Conferences during pitching changes, and time outs called as a result of an injury or other emergency, shall not be counted towards this limit... offenders may be subject to discipline
______________________________________

This is even more dumb than rule one, which increases the 12 second rule to 20 seconds.  Instead of banning meetings (conferences), they exempt the least needed and longest: the changing the pitcher ritual.

I guess it's better than nothing but if you're going to experiment, do it right:

27 outs or 60 minutes, whichever comes first.  Sunday, August 24, 2014

Regular season games must end within two hours. Constitutional amendment 1.  Sunday, August 18, 2013

Experimental League  Saturday, March 23, 2013