Sports Writing, March 7 Major League Baseball has been unemployed since December 2 due to the lack of a new labor agreement, which has led the Players Association and the owners of the teams to sit down at the table of negotiating with various proposals, including banning infield defensive formations. In a scenario where the main issue revolves around the economic sphere, a proposal of this type seems to have no importance or relevance, but to think in this way is to be far from reality. One of the main factors for which Major League Baseball is singled out is the slowness and length of games, which has pushed Major League Baseball (MLB) to look for alternatives that speed up the game and take more action on the ground, an objective for which a greater offensive contribution is necessary. Defensive formations move the greatest number of infielders to areas where an offensive player usually hits the ball more often or more strongly, thus limiting his space to connect for hits. In this type of formation, if a player is left-handed, the manager typically moves the third baseman to the middle of right field, bringing the right fielder, second baseman, first baseman and first baseman to the middle of the field. playing middle position. But also charging into that area moves shortstop and center fielder, making it more difficult for the hitter to hit a hit through that area of the field. In the event that the batter is right-handed, the players move to the left side of the diamond. On one occasion, after his retirement, former Major Leaguer David Ortiz indicated that if the defensive formations did not exist, he would have connected more than 3,000 hits in his career. During his time in the majors, Ortiz had 2,472 hits, a sign that he was able to overcome the implementation of this defense tool, but it is no less true that many of his hits ended up in the hands of a defender who was positioned towards the right side of the land. If this tool is eliminated, MLB will bet on a more offensive game, in which the players have more spaces to connect hits and therefore this attracts young fans who seek to enjoy more action in the games. Another aspect that the elimination of defensive formations would contribute to is that players would be more aggressive in the batter’s box, which, according to former Major League player Will Middlebrooks, would lead to shorter at-bats, speeding up the process. duration of the matches. “It could mean more contact before counts, which means 5 or 6 fewer pitches per at-bat,” explained the former Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies member in a message on his Twitter account. . The proposal is on the table. EFE hr/car
