MLB Rule Changes for 2022

julio 2022-03-31 19:29:15 UTC #1

Follow the link for the details. Areas with changes:

• AMENDED DESIGNATED HITTER RULE - Shohei Ohtani rule

• ACTIVE ROSTER LIMITS - 28 player limit thru May 1; pitcher optional assignments are 10 days thru May 1.

• EXTRA INNINGS RULE - Ghost runners.

• Universal DH

Probably some other, more obscure things that we won't know about until the full MLB Rules for 2022 are finalized (on paper) and promulgated. They will eventually be available at the MLBPA's website. (There's a link to the relevant page in our Baseball Links area.)

andyb 2022-03-31 19:45:54 UTC #2

MLB and the MLBPA jointly announced these rule changes for this season. pic.twitter.com/yYOkO2BCHF
— Fabian Ardaya ( @FabianArdaya ) March 31, 2022

Options before May 2 do not count on the 5-option limit also.

Also this article from a few days ago is interesting. While we are getting slightly larger bases now that will move 2B a few inches closer to 1B, the minors are actually experimenting with a change that would move 2B like 13 inches closer. 2B now is centered on the intersection between the base lines while 1B and 3B are inside the "diamond". I never realized that. This would probably have a decent effect on stolen bases, but it also means that fielders need to be a foot closer to the batter to maintain the same distance to 2B to get there for DPs and force outs.

xogfog 2022-03-31 21:16:55 UTC #3

Man, I cannot truly express my disdain for the ghost runner....

Purduke 2022-03-31 21:37:04 UTC #4

So agreed. The only thing worse would have been the "ghost win" that Scherzer and union were proposing for the favorites in the playoff rounds.

Lucky_Beagle 2022-03-31 23:37:39 UTC #5

I can accept the idea of putting a runner on base to hopefully end the game quicker. The term "ghost" runner though I don't get. The "ghost runner" in our back yard whiffle ball games (kick ball games) was an invisible runner who got moved along the same number of bases as the batter.

bkox 2022-04-01 21:50:47 UTC #6