MLB Considers Changing Strike Zone Size, Intentional Walk Rule
By Dan Jenkins
@DanTJenkins
Baseball has been criticized for years for its slow transition into the 21st Century.
Major League Baseball only recently added a reviewable replay system, well after the other three major North American sports implemented one.
Now, it seems as if baseball is trying to change something in a major way every season. Next on the competition committee's agenda is the size of the strike zone, something that has remained unchanged for 20 years.
If agreed upon with MLB owners, the new rule would move the bottom of the strike zone from the bottom of the batter's knee to the top of the knee. The zone was lowered from the proposed position to the bottom of the knees prior to the 1996 season.
A full history of the strike zone can be read on the league's website HERE.
The strike zone isn't the only thing on the committee's mind -- changing the way that batters are intentionally walked is also being discussed. Under the proposed rule, teams would only have to signify that a batter is being intentionally walked and he would be awarded first base without the pitcher having to throw four times to the catcher.
No-pitch intentional walks and other proposed rules were experimented with in the 2014 Arizona Fall League.
According to reports, the rule changes would have to be approved by the MLB rules committee and the players' union as a part of a new labor agreement.
The proposed rules are a part of the league's ongoing efforts to speed up the game's pace. New rules were implemented last season that limited the amount of time between innings, pitching changes and the time a coach or manager can spend on the mound.
