Scherzer "fundamentally against" MLB's new pitch clock

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WEST PALM BEACH, Florida – Max Scherzer This spring, he did not hesitate to criticize the state of baseball and the various theories and proposals made to try to solve the problems. And you can now add the pitch clock to its list of grievances.

Scherzer voiced strong opposition tonight to the new change aimed at improving the pace of Major League Baseball play, declaring itself "fundamentally against" the field timer after having experienced it for the first time during the citizens 7-6, nonstop win over the Astros in the first game of the Grapefruit League.

"I know, as players, it's something that the MLB is trying to negotiate," said the Cy Young Award winner. "I do not think there is a negotiation here. As players, this just should not be in the game. Have a shot clock – and if you have ball / punch implications – that's playing with the game's fabric. There is no clock in baseball, and there is no clock in baseball for a reason. So, that's what I think.

The MLB made its timing debut this weekend in Florida and Arizona as a test ball for spring training. The 20-second timer begins counting down when the thrower receives the receiver's ball after the first pitch of an at-bat and any other throws that are not followed. The drummers were asked to be in the area and ready to strike with at least five seconds remaining, and the pitchers were asked to start their ascent or to withdraw before the time runs out.

Scherzer-slings-white-vs-cardinals-sidebar.jpg "src =" http://www.masnsports.com/nationals-pastime/images/Scherzer-slings-white-vs-cardinals-sidebar.jpg "width =" 375 "height =" 247 "class =" mt-image-right "style =" float: right; margin: 0 0 20px 20px; "/> There is currently no penalty for an offense, but the MLB is planning to call extra bullets and strikes later this spring ... pending negotiations with the players' union. We have not decided to install the clock in the regular season, but the national team will prepare everyone to handle the clock just in case.</p> <p>"They will apply the rule," said director Davey Martinez. "And we must respect him."</p> <p>Scherzer's complaints have nothing to do with his own difficulties in keeping pace tonight. He regularly began to waste his time with about nine seconds on the clock, so that he never risked committing a violation.</p> <p>But he admitted that the clock, one of which was located behind the bridge circle of the third pedestal, was hindering his routine.</p> <p>"When I'm on the mound, I have a tunnel vision (in general) and all I see is the receiver," he said. "(The clock) is here. I do not know, now that I have to deal with it, I think it's more of a distraction than anything else. I understand that there are parts of the game that we can clean up, and I think there can be significant changes, but I'm basically against that. "</p> <p>Scherzer noted that his two-run start, in which he gave up his start to Jake Marisnick, two other singles and a 44-shot drive, felt like he was dragged. This is despite the fact that he did not run out of time.</p> <p>The Astros strikers hit nine balls in the first two rounds, and Scherzer said it was the biggest problem, citing a recent article on FiveThirtyEight.com that the number of balls in the MLB games has increased. nearly 12% since 1998.</p> <p>"You saw the exit. It seemed to me that it was quite slow and I do not think I had missed the stopwatch yet, right? And it was so slow because there were a lot of nauseating balls. I think it's more indicative of the slowing down of the game, it's the game balls, not the stopwatch. "</p> <p>The opinion of a player, even a star, may not seem to have too much weight. But Scherzer is not a star. This winter he has been appointed to the Executive Council of the Players' Association. He is therefore closely involved in negotiations between the union and the MLB.</p> <p>And if tonight was an indication of things to come, Scherzer will use his position to argue against this potential rule change.</p> <p>"I refuse to negotiate that," he said. "I will not put my name on this clock."</p> </div> </pre> </pre> <p>[ad_2]<br /> <br /><a href=Source link