Part of the new rule changes include the larger base shown with the former smaller base (photo by spectrumnews1.com)

Fri Mar 10, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

If you thought the new MLB rules were hard to digest, you were right, but you’ll still have to process a few more in order to understand what’s happening in this year’s World Baseball Classic.

We’ve already looked at the rules for team grouping and seeding as well as those governing player eligibility, so we can skip them. We also can skip the rules concerning the makeup of roster, MLB vetoes of player participation, and the various types of leaves players can be granted. We should note, however, the importance of team rankings in the determination of home and away teams.

• The first seed will play three games as the home team and one as the visitors. • The second, third, and fourth seeds will be the home team for two games each. • The fifth seed will be the home team for one game and the visitors to all the others.

Ties in the standings will be broken based on the following criteria, in this order of priority: • The tied teams won-lost record against each other. In case more than two teams are tied and one of them beat all the others, that team will be placed above them. Likewise, a team that lost to all the others would be placed at the bottom of the list. • The teams will be ranked according to the ratio of runs and defensive outs between the tied teams during the round. Needless to say, the team with the lowest ratio goes to the top of the list. • This criterion is the same as the previous one, except that the ratio will be earned runs per defensive out. • Team batting average in the round against the teams that still are tied. • Drawing of lots.

The games will be played according to the 2022 rules–the statement released on MLB.com doesn’t say whose 2022 rules– with a few of what MLB calls “supplements.” They are: • The three batter or to the end of the inning minimum for relief pitchers will be enforced. • Mound visits won’t be limited. • The DH rule will be in effect. • MLB’s replay rule will be followed unless the WBC decides otherwise and gives the teams prior notice of the change. One change, announced a few paragraphs after this declaration, is that two replay challenges per game will be allowed in the championship round and one per game in all the other rounds.

• The new rules on pitching time limits, the size of bases, and the positioning of infielders will not be applied. • If a pitcher has thrown 50 or more pitches, he won’t be allowed to pitch for at least the next four days. • For 30 or more pitches, he must wait a day before his next appearance on the mound. • A pitcher cannot work for more than two consecutive dalys. • The pitch limit per game in the first round is 65. It goes up to 80 and 95 in the following two rounds. Pitchers will be allowed to exceed those limits if it’s necessary to complete a batter’s plate appearance. • Pitches thrown in “for the purpose of effectuating an intentional walk” don’t count. What ever happened to the 2022 rule on declared intentional walks? • The zombie runner rules for extra innings will be in effect. • The official scorer will determine who is the winning pitcher.

Got that?