Royals hardly notice baseball’s uptempo rules

The last out of an inning was recorded and the pace-of-play clock started ticking, 2:25, 2:24, 2:23…

If you didn’t see the timepiece over the McDonald’s sign and next to the 400 marker in center field, you might not have known baseball is trying to pick up the pace.

It is, with new rules that many of the Royals say they hardly noticed during their first spring training game Wednesday at Surprise Stadium.

Still, for a game that featured 51 players and plenty of baserunners in a 13-2 victory over the Rangers, the 2-hour, 58-minute game time is probably seen as a triumph for baseball. Last year, games ran an average of 3:02.

Baseball is now on the clock. Teams have 2 minutes, 25 seconds between the third out of an inning and the first pitch of the next. Add 20 seconds for nationally televised games.

In between innings, the public-address announcer and umpire work with players. When the clock reaches 40 seconds, the announcer introduces the batter. At 30 seconds, the pitcher is to have thrown his final warm-up. At 20 seconds the batter must make his way to the box, and by :00, the first pitch is to be thrown.

Shortstop Alcides Escobar was on the clock twice leading off the first and second innings and didn’t feel rushed getting to the plate.

“Not at all,” Escobar said. “The umpire said, ‘Hi.’ He didn’t need to tell me to get into the box.”

When the Royals were on defense, things went smoothly. Catcher Erik Kratz’s throw to second was in plenty of time in his five frames.

“Five innings, no issues,” Kratz said.

Another rule involves the batter’s box. Hitters have to keep one foot in the box unless one of several exceptions occurs.

Eric Hosmer, who homered and doubled in his three at-bats, couldn’t wait to see a next pitch.

“I really didn’t think about it honest,” Hosmer said. “The only thing different was the clock, and it definitely seemed like it shortened the time between the innings. It got things moving a little bit.”

This story was originally published March 4, 2015 at 5:47 PM with the headline "Royals hardly notice baseball’s uptempo rules."