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Mercy, Mercy, Me

bmfc1 Aug 18 2019 02:22 PM

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/27405556/worth-exploring-mlb-mercy-rule I've wondered about this for years. I think that the idea has merit but doubt that it will ever happen as teams would complain about losing commercial time. You're not doing it in the playoffs but it's not a bad idea.

Benjamin Grimm Aug 18 2019 02:33 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

Can't a team just elect to forfeit?

Frayed Knot Aug 18 2019 02:38 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me Edited 8 time(s), most recently on Aug 18 2019 06:30 PM

It's not surprising to me that this suggestion comes out of the Bronx where the Yanx have long considered the majority of regular season games (like all those except vs the BoSox) to be a bother. I believe the idea that they might tire out a pitcher who'll they'll need in October and/or get a player injured during an unnecessary game against some inferior (in record and in status) opponent gnaws at them in the same way the lack of the DH in the NL gnawed at Hank Steinbrenner after Chin-Ming Wang inured his foot when, in addition to walking from the dugout to the mound six or seven times a game, he once* had to actually stand on and then move between bases. * Looking it up, Wang had no hits and no walks in 15 plate appearances as a Yanqui. But he once had a Sac Bunt where the defense got the a force play and Wang found himself on 1st. Several hits later he was scoring on a Jeter single but got an owie on his tootsie crossing the plate and didn't come out for the next inning. It was (at least as far as I can find) his lone time on the bases as a Yanqui. That mid-June 2008 game also turned out to be his final game for the season because of the foot issue. He'd go on to make just 9 more starts for the Yanx, all in 2009.

G-Fafif Aug 18 2019 02:48 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

Baseball teams have been getting through nine innings forever but Boone can't hack the occasional blowout in the wrong direction? Wanker.

41Forever Aug 18 2019 04:40 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 18 2019 08:38 PM

One of the (many) beauties of baseball is that no lead is insurmountable until there are three outs in the ninth inning. Football, hockey, basketball and the other lesser sports are tied to a clock limiting the opportunities for a come-from-behind win. In those sports, teams do have no chance to come back. Not the case in baseball. Typical MFY nonsense.

Fman99 Aug 18 2019 05:38 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

Yep fuck these guys and the mercy rule. Play the damn game.

kcmets Aug 18 2019 08:10 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

27 outs or 24, stop messing with perfection.

ashie62 Aug 18 2019 08:12 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

If you changed the entire metrics of baseball statistics would be altered. No thanks

MFS62 Aug 18 2019 08:34 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

This just means the umpires would have to throw Gardner out of the game in an earlier inning. Later

Edgy MD Aug 18 2019 09:32 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

Why do so many people in charge of baseball want less baseball? If Boone isn't enjoying himself, everybody should be sent home? That's amazing. Just forfeit, ya big baby. Or give your clipboard to somebody else and go take a shower.

Lefty Specialist Aug 19 2019 06:24 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

No. Aaron Boone can pound sand.

41Forever Aug 19 2019 06:41 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

Fans who pay $80 for a ticket and $40 to park should get a full ballgame, Aaron. Unless the fans are getting a partial refund.

Centerfield Aug 19 2019 08:16 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

=41Forever post_id=19303 time=1566218478 user_id=69] Fans who pay $80 for a ticket and $40 to park should get a full ballgame, Aaron. Unless the fans are getting a partial refund.

Full refund. Cost of parking, tolls, gas, concessions, and an hourly fee for time spent in travel.

Ceetar Aug 19 2019 08:54 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

I mean, you don't get a refund when the game ends after 7 due to rain. You're not paying for 9 innings you are paying for a competition. Entertainment. I think a mercy rule goes against the fundamentals of baseball though, the open-ended nature of it. But they've been whittling that away anyway. I don't think Manfred actually likes baseball.

41Forever Aug 19 2019 09:27 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

=Ceetar post_id=19308 time=1566226453 user_id=102] I mean, you don't get a refund when the game ends after 7 due to rain. You're not paying for 9 innings you are paying for a competition. Entertainment. I think a mercy rule goes against the fundamentals of baseball though, the open-ended nature of it. But they've been whittling that away anyway. I don't think Manfred actually likes baseball.

That's true, and I thought about that. But A) How often does that happen? I can't remember the last time the Mets had a rain-shortened win. B) Usually, if that does happen, the stadium is already pretty empty and spectators have chosen to leave. And, C) A smart team would offer fans who stick around a voucher or something. A mercy could happen on a beautiful day with a full stadium. I don't know of too many people who have left a baseball game because of the score.



They call mercy games in recreational softball because the organizers have to run though a bunch of games, and one-sided poundings can take forever and screw up the schedule. (My church team is called Know Mercy, in part because it was mercied in every game during the first season!)

Benjamin Grimm Aug 19 2019 09:40 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

Lots of people leave a baseball game early because of the score, especially if the home team is losing. Look at the seats in a game where there's a ten-run difference. A lot more of them will be empty than before the game got out of hand. But I don't like the idea of a rule change. But if a team is down by 20 runs and there are two innings left and the manager is running low on players and doesn't want to put an outfielder on the mound, I don't think a forfeit is a terrible idea.

Ceetar Aug 19 2019 09:43 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

thousands upon thousands of baseball fans leave every single game because of the score. And at a much lower threshhold than a mercy rule. Benjamin Grimm wrote: But I don't like the idea of a rule change. But if a team is down by 20 runs and there are two innings left and the manager is running low on players and doesn't want to put an outfielder on the mound, I don't think a forfeit is a terrible idea. The solution to this is the same solution to a lot of baseball's "problems" Remove the stigma of doing something a little difference than it was done in 1920. You can forfeit. You're down 12-2 in the 8th? forfeit. It's 7-2 after 8 and the rain started? forfeit. go home.

Centerfield Aug 19 2019 09:44 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

I mean, you don't get a refund when the game ends after 7 due to rain. You're not paying for 9 innings you are paying for a competition. Entertainment. I think a mercy rule goes against the fundamentals of baseball though, the open-ended nature of it. But they've been whittling that away anyway. I don't think Manfred actually likes baseball. That's true, and I thought about that. But A) How often does that happen? I can't remember the last time the Mets had a rain-shortened win. B) Usually, if that does happen, the stadium is already pretty empty and spectators have chosen to leave. And, C) A smart team would offer fans who stick around a voucher or something. A mercy could happen on a beautiful day with a full stadium. I don't know of too many people who have left a baseball game because of the score. They call mercy games in recreational softball because the organizers have to run though a bunch of games, and one-sided poundings can take forever and screw up the schedule. (My church team is called Know Mercy, in part because it was mercied in every game during the first season!) It's one thing if the weather conditions make it so that baseball can't be played. It's another if the performers themselves decide "that's enough, I'm going home".

G-Fafif Aug 19 2019 10:04 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 19 2019 10:11 AM

Mets last played a rain-shortened game 9/16/2017, beating the Phillies at Citi Field in six, 6-3.

Edgy MD Aug 19 2019 10:08 AM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

Did Aaron Boone the third baseman, when his team was leading by 10 or more runs, ever say, "Take me out, Skip — I'd rather get to the showers early than to pad my stats against back-end bullpenners and position-player pitchers"?

seawolf17 Aug 19 2019 12:24 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

The mercy rule is incredibly stupid. Play the damn game. You want a W, you get the other team out 27 times. Each spot in the batting order gets at least three shots. That's it.

kcmets Aug 19 2019 01:12 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

Has a regular season game ever been forfeited because of the score? The change-for-the-sake-of-change crowd running and watching baseball needs to dry up or go watch tennis or golf.

Ceetar Aug 19 2019 01:27 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

dunno, not recently for sure. I don't think MLB should do it, but it's not really the end of the world. I saw a mercy rule in the WBC and it was a lot of fun actually, I didn't feel cheapened. There's an additional element of drama to it. You're going to the bottom of the 7th down 11, you know you gotta score two. There's some heightened drama there, some interest. Is the game about to end? Certainly more than a 12-1 game would generally ever give. You're basically trading the very very rare huge 8th/9th rally that happens almost never for regular late-inning interest in blowouts. Plus saving 2 innings of work, and time. The time thing is a good one I think. Most people don't actually have a problem with any given baseball game's length, but there are slogs within games, or within seasons, that can wear on you. Cut out two innings of blowout baseball from a few games? Sure, why not. And we've got data on how likely a 9th inning comeback is down 9-3. If the skys open up and you know that you're not getting back on the field for 2 hours, AND you're game is cross country tomorrow or something? Get the two managers together with the umpires and 'secretly' forfeit. Game over, no waiting, let's go home. Even from a fan experience, who's really missing milling around a rainy empty stadium for 2 hours to see 15 pitches and a few strikeouts?

41Forever Aug 19 2019 03:15 PM Re: Mercy, Mercy, Me

dunno, not recently for sure. I don't think MLB should do it, but it's not really the end of the world. I saw a mercy rule in the WBC and it was a lot of fun actually, I didn't feel cheapened. There's an additional element of drama to it. You're going to the bottom of the 7th down 11, you know you gotta score two. There's some heightened drama there, some interest. Is the game about to end? Certainly more than a 12-1 game would generally ever give. You're basically trading the very very rare huge 8th/9th rally that happens almost never for regular late-inning interest in blowouts. Plus saving 2 innings of work, and time. The time thing is a good one I think. Most people don't actually have a problem with any given baseball game's length, but there are slogs within games, or within seasons, that can wear on you. Cut out two innings of blowout baseball from a few games? Sure, why not. But the beauty of baseball is such a comeback CAN happen, and it can't happen in the lesser sports governed by a clock. If I'm down 10-0 in the bottom of the ninth, you bet I want my chance to come back -- because it's possible. And I suspect the first time Boone's "savages" were on the receiving end of mercy, he'd go ballistic.