The biggest issues in the new collective bargaining agreement, and the ones that largely led to the 99-day lockout, won’t be visible to fans come Opening Day.
While some of the on-field rule changes that were discussed — such as the elimination of the shift, bigger bases and the implementation of a pitch clock — will have to wait till next year at least, there will be a few noticeable differences in Major League Baseball this season, especially in October.
Here’s a breakdown of the changes, courtesy of the new CBA:
Bigger playoffs
The postseason field is expanding from 10 to 12 teams, meaning there will be an extra wild card in each league and no more one-game playoffs.
The top two teams in each league — the division winners with the two best records — will receive first-round byes while the third division winner hosts the third wild card and the top two wild cards will square off, each in a three-game series.
The No. 1 seed will then play the winner of the top two wild cards and the No. 2 seed will play the winner of the third division champ and third wild card, each in a best-of-five series, just as the division round has been in the past.
The championship series and World Series remain best-of-seven.
Another ramification — there will be no more chances for a Game 163. Tiebreakers will be used to determine playoff teams, if necessary, instead of an extra showdown on the field.
Pitchers hang up their bats
Aside from two-way star Shohei Ohtani, pitchers won’t be hitting anymore as the universal designated hitter has arrived. That should mean fewer automatic strikeouts, sacrifice bunt attempts or the occasional highlight of a pitcher hitting a home run in the National League.
Ohtani will have his own rule, allowing him to stay in the game as a DH even after he exits as a pitcher.
Other changes
- The “ghost” runner — an automatic runner starting on second base in extra innings — is back, but only for 2022.
- Doubleheaders will revert to nine-inning games each after featuring seven-inning twin bills the last two years.
- Players can now only be optioned a maximum of five times in a season, which should cut down on the constant shuttling from MLB to Triple-A for some young players.
- Also just this year, rosters will expand from 26 to 28 through May 1 to help teams compensate for the shortened spring training.