MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has worked tirelessly to help rekindle interest in the sport of baseball and as a result, there have been some radical changes. Fans have been more receptive to some than others and in at least one case, Manfred would like to turn back the clock a bit.
Over the past several seasons, there has been a growing trend of using an “opener” as opposed to trotting out the starting pitcher in the first inning. Starters are also throwing fewer pitches per game and relievers are becoming more heavily relied upon. There has also been an uptick in substitutions per inning, which has slowed down the game.
Manfred would like to return to a time when starting pitchers were more prominent.
“There’s a lot of fans who feel like the change from ‘let’s see who today’s pitching matchup is’ to ‘who’s the opener today’ has not been a positive one,” Manfred said, via ESPN’s Jesse Rogers.
The pivot away from traditional starting roles began in 2018 when the Tampa Bay Rays popularized using an “opener.” And in a copycat league, it didn’t take long before most other teams followed suit.
Bullpen games have become even more pronounced this season with the Arizona Diamondbacks using eight pitchers during Game 4 of the 2023 NLCS — none of whom tossed more than two innings.
How Manfred and the MLB can change that remains to be seen, but one suggestion is to have teams lose their DH once the starting pitcher is removed from the game. That would encourage teams to do away with openers and then leave their starters in the game longer. The one caveat is that a poor performance or injury would not only result in a team losing their starter but also their DH for the game.
It’s unlikely that many teams would support such a proposal.
