The Full Count

Major League Baseball is trying to add yet another rule to their illustrious rule book. This time they're testing an extra inning rule where a runner would be automatically start off on second base. The rule is being proposed to help increase the pace of the game.

Minor League Baseball will be testing the rule for the upcoming season. If you think about it, it should be very interesting considering that Minor league baseball isn't aired on national television just like slow pitch beer softball isn't on national television.

Today people are so worried about how fast something can go and how quickly they can be done with something. If you ask me, MLB is doing way too much to try and please fans rather than just playing baseball. They're so worried about pumping up the pace of the game that they seem to be forgetting about why people attend America's past time.

Last year the MLB implemented a rule that said batters must leave on foot inside the batters box at all times or else the player would be punished with an automatic strike. The rule seemed to work for about half of the year but later seemed to be worthless. Players seemed to not care and umpires weren't enforcing it.

Now I understand that there are times where it seems like a baseball game can take forever. Some pitchers have a knack for taking their sweet time on the mound and some batters seem to take a million practice swings. All in all, yes baseball is a slow game but if you think about it, it wasn't made to be a fast paced game. It is a very mental sport and requires a lot of thought and focus. Not everybody can through an 85 mph slider in a space smaller than the human body and not everybody can hit a ball the size of an apple coming at them at 100+ mph.

Peanuts and cracker jacks, ice cream in fun sized helmets, the smell of fresh cut grass, why would anybody want to hurry and leave? If that can't make you want to stay, lets not forget about the beautiful sunsets baseball fields always seem to provide. The authenticity of the game is unlike any other. Baseball has been around longer than any of the other four major sports in America and has some of the oldest stadiums around.

If you can't be convinced that baseball is fine the way it is, than you should leave that seat for someone who can fully appreciate the game. Nobody will judge you if you don't like the game but someone out there loves the game more than they love their own mother and would love to have that ticket.