Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game is drawing praise for its new and unique ending. The All-Star swing-off that gave the National League the win Tuesday night, July 15, stole the show.
Could the swing-off be an option in the regular season?
Major League Baseball has made some good choices recently regarding rule changes. Adding a pitch clock and banning the defensive shift, among other innovations, have helped revive interest in the game. Add last night’s ending to the list.
National League slugger Kyle Schwarber’s three homers on three swings to break a 6-6 tie sent fans and players into a celebratory frenzy. The game’s MVP joked afterwards, “One good BP wins you a trophy these days.”
The batting practice-style ending even had the American League players smiling.
“Our side, to see how excited they were out there, it’s like whiffle-ball in the back yard, here we go, let’s do it,” American League manager Aaron Boone said.
When did the swing-off become a thing?
The swing-off rules were used for the first time Tuesday night, but the rules were put in place three years ago to settle an All-Star Game tie. Despite efforts by MLB to move the game back to having more action on the bases, league officials know home runs are what the fans love to see.
Cal Raleigh’s win in the Home Run Derby the night before brought in 5.7 million viewers on ESPN, a 5% increase from the year before, according to the network. All-Star hero Schwarber and others wondered how the mini-derby might play in the regular season.
“Makes you feel like it’s a penalty kick,” Schwarber said. “It’s the NHL going into the shots there. I mean the shootouts. So yeah, I mean that was kind of like the baseball version of a shootout, right? Or extra time. So it was really fun.”
Why is it unlikely to become a regular-season rule?
Aaron Boone made sure to point out that he would not advocate for the swing-off to be a part of the regular season but didn’t discount it altogether.
“It’ll be interesting to see where that goes,” Boone said. “There’s probably a world where you could see that in the future, where maybe it’s in some regular-season mix. I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised if people start talking about it like that.”
The rules settling tie games were changed in 2020 when MLB placed a runner on second base to start each extra inning. It has all but eliminated marathon games. National League manager Dave Roberts agreed with Boone, no swing-off in the regular season.
“I think that it was great for this exhibition, but in the regular season?” Roberts said. “I don’t mind how it plays out in the regular season with the man on second base. But this was the first time in history we got to do this, and I think it played pretty well tonight.”
If nothing else, league executives have to feel good about having another successful rule change, even if it’s just for exhibition purposes. If the game ever needed another boost, the swing-off can definitely bring the crowd to its feet.
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Author: Chris Francis
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