The new strike zone strikes out

By Clay Allen Sports Central Columnist

Why change the strike zone? Sure, the rule book says the strike zone should span the width of the plate and a height between a player's knees and underarms. Most fans know the definition. They also know the strike zone has grown shorter and wider than the book says, but this change hasn't caused much complaint. Well, until this year.

That's when the powers that be decided to step in and enforce the textbook definition. They decided to continue to ignore other rules, but this strike zone rule, it really bugs them. You know the rule that says a player must be standing on a bag when he catches the ball to get a force out? Well, that one apparently doesn't apply to double plays. The second baseman usually gets to stand about three feet from the bag for the force - as long as he was on the bag before the runner scared him off. The rule that says a player must be tagged out with the ball if the play is not a force out? Well, in the bigs, if the ball gets there before the runner, but the fielder is a little late on the tag, that's okay. The runner is out, because good throws are hard to come by. If you don't believe me, check the replays.

So, why is the strike zone such a sacred issue for Bud Selig and company? We found out last week when the Commissioner's office sent out a memo to the league's umpires instructing them to "hunt" for strikes and to try to decrease pitch counts. In fact, pitch counts would be used to help evaluate umpire performance, all in an effort to reduce the average game time in the league.

The umpires didn't like the memo and the fans don't, either. Luckily, the umpires managed to pressure the Commissioner into retracting the pitch count evaluation. Unfortunately, they still enforce the new strike zone.

Not that following the rules is bad. It's always a good idea to follow the rules. But, sometimes rules evolve. That has happened with the strike zone. The strike zone has become smaller in recent years, more hitter-friendly. A strike meant a batter watched a pitch that was hittable. Now, a pitch called a strike is often not even hittable. Those up-and-in pitches that jam a batter if he unwisely chooses to swing - those are now called strikes. The pitches that start out at about chin level then dive down to the ankles right over the plate - they technically cross through the strike zone, but they are almost impossible to hit. Those are strikes, too.

Randy Johnson is loving it. With 225 strikeouts so far, he is taking advantage of the confusion the new strike zone has caused. Our sources say Johnson is on pace to fan 385 and surpass Nolan Ryan's season-single record for strikeouts. That would be an unbelievable feat.

Not a very practical feat, though.

For years, baseball has been looking for ways to increase run production, which would increase fan support. Lowering the mound a couple of inches might do the trick. A harder ball, smaller ballparks. So why, after trying so hard, has the league reversed its stance and adopted a policy that decreases offense? According to Selig, games last too long for Americans with increasingly shorter attention spans. Fans are losing interest. (I'm not convinced.)

There's some bad news for Selig. Early numbers suggest that average game time is down a miniscule five minutes. Offensive production is down nearly 10 percent over last year. So, instead of gaining fans by decreasing game times, Selig, by his own logic, is losing fans because games are just as long with less offense.

Baseball owes the home run race of 1998 for reviving the game after the strike-shortened season alienated fans a few years earlier. Instead, it's turning its back on such performance.

It's just another strange tactic to add to the growing list of blunders committed by the Commissioner's office. With the jury still out on the success of interleague play, why test fans' allegiance with another big change?

The newly enforced strike zone confuses me. Sure, I like to watch a pitcher fan 15 batters in a game, but I don't want to watch every pitcher fan that many. I need to see home runs and triples. I am also tired of watching batter after batter take off for first believing he had taken ball four, then twist around when the umpire calls him out on strikes. The crowd boos, the player complains, and another runner (another potential run) takes a seat. But most of all, I'm tired of not knowing what a strike looks like anymore. Aren't you?

Article courtesy of Sports Central