Universal DH, ads on jerseys among the changes MLB is reportedly considering
St. Louis pitcher Miles Mikolas might be the answer to a future trivia question.
Mikolas doubled in the first game of the Cardinals-Braves divisional series last fall, and that could go down as the final hit* by a pitcher in Major League Baseball history.
*The last hit by a pitcher in the 2019 regular season was by another St. Louis pitcher. Jack Flaherty had a single in the Cardinals’ 9-0 win over the Cubs in the season finale.
After MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and union executive director Tony Clark met Wednesday, the framework of a potential deal for the 2020 season was discussed. And, as has been the case the last few months, the two sides disagreed about how close they were to agreement.
However, if baseball does return after a delay caused by the coronavirus, it appears there could be some significant changes. Here are four things that are being talked about.
Universal DH
Tom Haudricourt, a longtime baseball scribe for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, said if the season begins, the designated hitter will be instituted in the National League for good — to the chagrin of Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright.
Ads on uniforms
Trevor Plouffe, a former MLB infielder who played for the Twins, Phillies, Rays and A’s, reported the deal would include the potential of jersey advertising. For people who hate the Nike swoosh on MLB jerseys, this won’t be welcome news.
Expanded playoffs
The Detroit Free Press reported the postseason field would expand from the current 10 teams.
“MLB’s playoff format would expand to 16 teams for both 2020 and 2021, leading up to the expiration of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement following the 2021 season,” the Free Press reported.
CBS Sports’ Matt Snyder suggested a format that could be played in a month.
“Let’s say the first round is a three-game series, the divisional round is five games and the LCS and World Series rounds remain seven games,” Snyder wrote. “The most any given team would play is 22 games. The three-game series would need four days, the five-gamers would need seven days and the seven-game series need nine days. That’s 29 days.”
The schedule
ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that MLB’s proposed 60-game regular season was a potential stumbling block for the players.
If MLB countered with a 66-game season, the Athletic’s Jayson Stark suggested this breakdown to the season:
