Hey, MLB, here are more things you can ban to boost offense
It's only new MLB commissioner Rob Manfred's second day on the job, and he already has people rolling their eyes. On Sunday, the day he took over for Bud Selig, Manfred made diehard baseball fans facepalm when he talked about banning defensive shifts as a way to boost offense in games.
It's a strange idea that basically says: Hey, MLB team, I know you've invested time and resources into scouting your opponents' tendencies, but in the interest of getting more kids to turn off their video games and watch baseball, we're not going to let you do that anymore. Yeah, yeah, strategy is cool, but let's make more money.
The NFL changed its rules to add more offense, and that's been met with both objection and record viewership. So baseball, which is trying to appeal to new fans, particularly of the younger variety, could be following that lead. But, to be clear here, Manfred just floated the idea. There's no indication a ban on defensive shifts is actually going to happen. Yet.
Getting rid of the shift, though, is pretty bland. Good luck getting a 13-year-old to turn off his PS4 because the shortstop isn't allowed to play behind second base anymore. He's yawning already!
If the object is to produce more offense, then let's think bigger. Let's consider other parts of the game that aren't a problem right now, but that we can ban just for the sake of chaos and (*crossing our fingers*) better ratings:
1. Outfielders
Here's how you score more runs: Just get rid of a bunch of defenders. Sorry, outfielders, you're gone. The four infielders now have to cover the whole field. Run and get those balls, dudes.
2. Make all the outfielders DHs
I know this isn't a "banning," but it needs to be addressed. If we want more offense, we can't just get rid of the outfielders altogether. That's one-third of a team's lineup. All those outfielders we just took away, they're all designated hitters now. All their focus should be on making offense happen, every second of the game.
3. Double plays
It just seems unfair that the defense can get two outs in one play. Obviously, we need not be rewarding teams for playing defense anymore. You get one out, play stops there. Gotta keep these runners on base so they can score runs.
4. Pitchers throwing with their dominant hand the entire time
Sorry, pitchers, you have to use both hands now. If you're a righty, you're throwing as a lefty in the second, fourth, sixth and (ha-ha, yeah right) eighth innings. And vice verse. Let's see what your ERA looks like now, Clayton Kershaw.
5. Gloves
A long time ago in baseball history, players started using gloves to help them catch the ball. It's a trend that remarkably continues to this day. Gloves sound like preparedness and preparedness is something that doesn't create offense. Bare hands forever, like Kevin Mitchell.
Here's another good thing about banning gloves: If people are still mad about banning defensive shifts, just reinstate those and say "good luck without your glove, suckers."
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Mike Oz is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
