Experimental Rules Used For First Time In Pro Baseball Game In CT

NEW BRITAIN, CT — Some experimental new rules were utilized for the first time in a professional baseball game in Connecticut Tuesday night, as the New Britain Bees and Southern Maryland Blue Crabs of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball squared off at New Britain Stadium.

Some new rule changes have been in effect the entire season, including elimination of mound visits and increasing the size of the bases from 15 to 18 inches square. Five other rules have been implemented for the second half of the year:

• Home plate umpire assisted by radar tracking system and an MLB-defined strike zone
• Pitcher is required to step off the rubber in order to attempt a pickoff
• One foul bunt is permitted with two strikes before a strikeout is called
• Batters may “steal” first base on any pitch not caught in flight (the batter can be thrown out if he attempts to run)
• “Check swing” rule made more batter-friendly

Tuesday was the first home game for the Bees since the new rules came into play, but there was little activity involving the changes. One batter from each team bunted foul with two strikes, but neither hitter was able to successfully convert the second chance at-bat. In the fifth inning, Blue Crab pitcher Tommy Thorpe, a left-hander, had to step off the rubber on a pickoff attempt of Bees runner Bijan Rademacher.

No batters attempted to reach first base on pitches not caught in flight, and the scheduled New Britain debut of the "electronic umpire" has been delayed for at least a week.

"The system is not yet operational; we will be having it tested this week and hope to have it ready to go by the next homestand," Bees assistant general manager Paul Herrmann said.

Early in the contest, a few questionable strike calls by home plate umpire Matthew Kane resulted in some incredulous stares, as if the hitters were wishing the electronic system was in place.

New Britain manager Mauro Gozzo, a former major league pitcher, said he has mixed feelings about the new rules.

"There will be more running, even from guys who can't run," he said about the step-off rule. "If the pitcher's going to be slow to home plate, these guys are going to attempt to run, so it's very important to have a good-throwing catcher. [A runner] only has to look at one spot now; as soon as that front foot moves up off the ground, [the pitcher] cannot go toward first any more. This will force left-handers to be quicker going home. This also affects pitch calling; catchers are not going to call breaking balls automatically in breaking ball counts, because they want a decent pitch to try to throw a guy out."

The new bunting-with-two-strikes policy, which formerly resulted in an automatic strikeout, will create "a little more action," Gozzo believes.

"With two strikes, these guys may be bunting, like Bij [Rademacher] bunted with two strikes and didn't put down a good one, but he had nothing to lose there because if he bunts it foul, he can still be in a two-strike count," he said.

Gozzo said the bigger bases have made little to no difference. However, he would like to see mound visits reinstated to the former rule of one free visit per inning by a manager or pitching coach.

"I think that [change] was because of time consumption and making the games longer, but I don't think the games are any shorter than they were with mound visits," he said. "From a pitching perspective, mound visits are a necessity."

Tuesday's low-scoring game, won 3-2 by the Blue Crabs, lasted 2 hours, 47 minutes.

Whether for or against the new rules, Gozzo says his players will adjust accordingly.

"These are professional athletes and they will adapt to it," he said.