How to fix baseball

[KSaw]

I can't wait until all baseballs come with embedded RFID chips, and RFID chips delineate the edges of the plate, and RFID chips are embedded within uniforms at the knees and beltline, creating a virtual strike zone. No ump required behind the plate, guaranteed precise ball/strike calls.

 

Maybe they could even embed them in players' shoes and gloves, and the bases, so that we don't need umpires anymore, period.

 

And just how do you do that when the strike zone is determined by a hitter's position as he swings? His hitting stance and not his position as he takes a pitch. An umpire must imagine the swing from the last stride from a hitter, if he is simply standing and taking.

 

Also, a hitter is generally at the back of the batter's box. A pitch could be high enough as it reaches the plate and yet be too low as it passes the batter. It is still a strike.

[Smedley Butler]

And just how do you do that when the strike zone is determined by a hitter's position as he swings? His hitting stance and not his position as he takes a pitch. An umpire must imagine the swing from the last stride from a hitter, if he is simply standing and taking.

 

Also, a hitter is generally at the back of the batter's box. A pitch could be high enough as it reaches the plate and yet be too low as it passes the batter. It is still a strike.

 

You don't think a digital signal constantly broadcasting it's exact position, in concert with all the other signal points that I outline, would be able to take this into account? I guarantee you that a web of integrated signals, broadcasting their relative positions at the speed of light, will be able to react in time to a human swinging a bat altering their relative position to the rest of the network in real time.

[KSaw]

A computer also can't tell a batter to stop chirping a catcher or handle a bean ball incident.

[Captain Adama]

A computer also can't tell a batter to stop chirping a catcher or handle a bean ball incident.

 

Oh Kirk, your umpire apologetics never gets old

[KSaw]

Recognition of their need and saying that they are anywhere close to perfect is quite different. Some are quite good, some are pretty bad. Good ones have bad games. They are still needed.

[Caper]

I can't wait until all baseballs come with embedded RFID chips, and RFID chips delineate the edges of the plate, and RFID chips are embedded within uniforms at the knees and beltline, creating a virtual strike zone. No ump required behind the plate, guaranteed precise ball/strike calls.

 

Maybe they could even embed them in players' shoes and gloves, and the bases, so that we don't need umpires anymore, period.

 

You couldn't add chips at the Knees and belt line... Players would constantly be pulling chips up and down 3 or 4 inches.... If you wanted to do it, all you would need to do is base the strike zone on height, when a player comes to bat a system picks out his strike zone from a data base... and that's his strike zone. I don't know if I would favour such a system... Put it would be fun to see it work.

[Smedley Butler]

A computer also can't tell a batter to stop chirping a catcher or handle a bean ball incident.

 

Then you have some sort of mechanism to deal with this, such as dedicated security to get between players in these situations. Just get the human error out of the actual game, any extracurricular issues to be solved after that are minor in comparison, such as this one you raised here.

[Smedley Butler]

You couldn't add chips at the Knees and belt line... Players would constantly be pulling chips up and down 3 or 4 inches.... If you wanted to do it, all you would need to do is base the strike zone on height, when a player comes to bat a system picks out his strike zone from a data base... and that's his strike zone. I don't know if I would favour such a system... Put it would be fun to see it work.

 

The chips would be sewn into the material at those points. Still, your suggestion would be pretty simple to implement also, if that DID prove to be a problem.

 

Edit:

 

-Also, it would be pretty hard to get away with adjusting the position of the knee/belt chips as a pitch that is obviously in the strike zone would suddenly be called a ball. Would be very obvious that either the guy's cheating or the technology is malfunctioning.

[Abomination]

You couldn't add chips at the Knees and belt line... Players would constantly be pulling chips up and down 3 or 4 inches.... If you wanted to do it, all you would need to do is base the strike zone on height, when a player comes to bat a system picks out his strike zone from a data base... and that's his strike zone. I don't know if I would favour such a system... Put it would be fun to see it work.

 

Yeah, I don't think the chips in the player's clothing would work (at least at the plate, it could be awesome in the field for defense). I'm also not in favor of getting rid of umps, but some sort of google glasses type approach where information could be overlaid for the ump would be really sweet.

[Dick_Pole]

I can't wait until all baseballs come with embedded RFID chips, and RFID chips delineate the edges of the plate, and RFID chips are embedded within uniforms at the knees and beltline, creating a virtual strike zone. No ump required behind the plate, guaranteed precise ball/strike calls.

 

Maybe they could even embed them in players' shoes and gloves, and the bases, so that we don't need umpires anymore, period.

 

I would hate that. I may be in a minority but I think part of the charm of baseball is the human element to it. A pitcher doesn't only need to know the hitter he's facing but also the ump - what's going to be a strike and what's not. It adds a layer of complexity even if it adds in a layer of Bautista whiny-ness.

 

A "standard ump" takes away one of the baseball handicapper's best bets too. I'm not an expert on this but I tailed someone who was kind enough to post his over/under picks on game run totals based on some umpiring data he gathered in another forum and it's been the only time I consistently made money betting on individual baseball games.

[John_Havok]

I had difficulty picking up on that seeing as this entire thread is taking about making changes to baseball, not enforcing current rules or guidelines.

 

 

 

It appears that most people who complain either have an outside influence that allows it to affect them. Or they're a casual fan and don't really have a reason to complain because they don't really care for baseball enough to not be classed a casual fan.

 

It's sad where someone has dedicated 3-4 hours to go watch a baseball game in person is put off by an extra 20 or 30 minutes

 

 

 

I can't think of any baseball fans I know who complain about the length of a baseball game.

 

I complain about the length of Sox / Yankees games. Last year I had to mow my lawn twice in one game.

[bigpaulie]

Sometimes it is not the extra 20-30 mins, it is normally the flow of the game that is affected. if the game going along, excessive breaks in the play can grind it to a halt real quick

 

Much like a great hockey, basketball game where the refs blow the whistler and it slows the game to a crawl

[Smedley Butler]

I would hate that. I may be in a minority but I think part of the charm of baseball is the human element to it. A pitcher doesn't only need to know the hitter he's facing but also the ump - what's going to be a strike and what's not.

 

To each their own I guess, but I couldn't disagree more with these two points.

 

Any standardized game with set rules that bends those rules based on whimsy is an abomination. ;-)

[Smedley Butler]

Much like a great hockey, basketball game where the refs blow the whistler and it slows the game to a crawl

 

The Sochi hockey was so much better to watch than your standard NHL broadcast with commercial breaks every few minutes. Flowed so much better.

[GeorgiaPeach]

Ehhhh not really. Honestly, I think it would be feasible right now, unless someone with more knowledge on the subject knows something I don't? RFID is pretty old tech at this point.

 

It would be sweet though, eh? Man.......

 

I'm not saying it isn't feasible. Its just that MLB isn't gonna jump at it right away

[GeorgiaPeach]

Move the Rays to Montreal.

 

Shouldn't MLB be looking to move to better locations, not worse?

[GeorgiaPeach]

Sometimes it is not the extra 20-30 mins, it is normally the flow of the game that is affected. if the game going along, excessive breaks in the play can grind it to a halt real quick

 

Much like a great hockey, basketball game where the refs blow the whistler and it slows the game to a crawl

 

I don't need a particular flow of the game. Its baseball.

[Dick_Pole]

To each their own I guess, but I couldn't disagree more with these two points.

 

Any standardized game with set rules that bends those rules based on whimsy is an abomination. ;-)

 

Then why not standardize the diamonds? Only sport out of the North American big 4 where the field of play isn't the same across all venues. Same type of thing, kind of. A home run in Wrigley that's not a home run in Oakland is a far greater abomination than a strike in Wrigley that's not a strike in Oakland!

[GeorgiaPeach]

Then why not standardize the diamonds? Only sport out of the North American big 4 where the field of play isn't the same across all venues. Same type of thing, kind of. A home run in Wrigley that's not a home run in Oakland is a far greater abomination than a strike in Wrigley that's not a strike in Oakland!

 

I don't think I would've gone on my baseball trips if the parks were all the same

[Dick_Pole]

Shouldn't MLB be looking to move to better locations, not worse?

 

I honestly think Montreal will see a baseball team once again...maybe not in 5 or 10 years but in a few decades. Why? Because every city that has ever lost its only baseball team since 1900 has eventually gotten one back. Milwaukee, KC, Washington, Baltimore, Seattle. The only exception is Brooklyn which doesn't count as its own city and even so I think is a pretty good candidate to get a franchise again too. MLB is just too arrogant to admit it failed in a market.

[Dick_Pole]

I don't think I would've gone on my baseball trips if the parks were all the same

 

Exactly. Baseball has a charm about it in its uniqueness. I think umpiring is part of that too, though just a personal opinion.

[Smedley Butler]

Then why not standardize the diamonds? Only sport out of the North American big 4 where the field of play isn't the same across all venues. Same type of thing, kind of. A home run in Wrigley that's not a home run in Oakland is a far greater abomination than a strike in Wrigley that's not a strike in Oakland!

 

Yup, and yet I LOOOOOOOOVE the fact that baseball field dimensions aren't standardized. I'm a huge architecture nerd though, so that's probably why. I love the variety in different parks, I almost came in my pants when I first saw the left field warehouse/foul pole at Petco.

[Dick_Pole]

Yup, and yet I LOOOOOOOOVE the fact that baseball field dimensions aren't standardized. I'm a huge architecture nerd though, so that's probably why. I love the variety in different parks, I almost came in my pants when I first saw the left field warehouse/foul pole at Petco.

 

My favourite part of being in the Wrigley stands is that you're so close to the field you can literally see Soriano's eyes checking out the various 15 yo girls in the stands. Of course for that bonus experience you need a 15 yo girl in the stands and a Soriano out in left field. I managed to take a pic of that lazy f*** with his head turned around to the stands with action in the infield in the far background. Only in Wrigley are you close enough to the field where you can get that sort of angle in a realistic shot *EPIC WIN*

[Abomination]

Yup, and yet I LOOOOOOOOVE the fact that baseball field dimensions aren't standardized. I'm a huge architecture nerd though, so that's probably why. I love the variety in different parks, I almost came in my pants when I first saw the left field warehouse/foul pole at Petco.

 

It would be interesting to allow that a little in the NHL. Obviously it would have to be symmetrical, but if they allowed teams to vary the rink length and red lines a little, and the width between NHL and international dimensions etc it would make quite the experiment.