![]() Making the Universal DH permanent is probably one that will help a little, but more than that is required. It won’t work sometimes, but enough times it will result in a hit by pulling a shifted defender out of position.Īll that said, I think something still needs to be done on the rules side to re-balance the game. Another is simply ordering a hit and run if you have anyone on base and the defense shifts. But Maddon, Scioscia, and every other manager in the league over the last decade refuses to order this solution. Hell, if he’s uncomfortable with bunting, just a check swing down 3B line probably gets him a double until they stop shifting on him. Someone with speed like Ohtani (probably the worst affected by shifts on the Angels IMO) would reach base every single time he did this. Even Pujols could probably up his batting average 15 or 20 points per season if he did this. It’s been obvious for half a decade now that anyone who is not literally a statue should bunt down the opposite line as soon as they see a shift to their pull side. Some of the blame for the drop in offense related to shifts definitely falls on hitters themselves and especially management. Would you use them early in the game on the #8 hitter, or want to save them for late-game situations against the likes of Cody Bellinger? To me, that’s a far more interesting and balanced system than what the game has evolved into now, which is basically a mashup of beer league softball positioning and watching an AI spit out data-mined graphs. Say the limit is three totally free form shifts per game. ![]() If you think about it, that would actually add some drama and intrigue. You could also go the way of replay challenges and give each team a set number of times to break with the above rules per game. That keeps a meaningful distinction between IFs and OFs but still allows for some data-based creativity on the defensive side. His general rules about infielders having no more than one foot on the OF grass for each pitch and requiring two IFs somewhere on each side of second base are reasonable to me. I actually agree with Ban the Shift Guy for the most part. OT: Novak Djokovic has been defaulted from the US Open for hitting a linesperson with a tennis ball. The Dodgers fan who had his cardboard cutout decapitated earlier this season has been resurrected. I somehow missed this piece from a columnist to ban the shift… Who will come out on top? Quite memorably, Trout hit his 300th homer over the weekend, making him the franchise leader…Does Trout still have a shot at the AL MVP?įrom Emma Baccellieri: read about how fake crowd noise is used in stadiums! are vying for the home run crown, but other players are much in play. Some deaths this weekend… Lou Brock passed away…on the heels of Tom Seaver… and his streak for the most consecutive games played in the history of the league. Sunday marked the 25-year anniversary of Cal Ripken Jr. ![]() Is it time for Jahmai Jones?Īngel Stadium was originally supposed to be sold for $325 million. Franklin Barreto probably just injured himself. After sweeping the Astros in four games over three days, the Angels sit just five games out of a postseason spot.ĭavid Fletcher is still injured. Enjoy the holiday! It feels weird that the Angels aren’t playing in Labor Day, but what we can do is scoreboard-watch.
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