 Time
element
American
football, basketball, ice hockey and soccer all use a
clock, and fans must often watch games end as one team
kills the clock rather than compete directly against the
opposing team. In contrast, baseball has no clock; a
team cannot win without getting the last batter out, and
a rally can start at any time.
In recent decades, observers have criticized
professional baseball for the length of its games, with
some justification as the time required to play a
baseball game has increased steadily through the years.
One hundred years ago, games typically took an hour and
a half to play; today, the average major league baseball
game is finished in just under three hours. This is due
to longer commercial breaks, increased offense, more
pitching changes, and a decrease in the pace of play. In
response, Major League Baseball has instructed umpires
to be more strict in enforcing speed-up rules and the
size of the strike zone. Although the official rules
specify that when the bases are empty, the pitcher
should deliver the ball within 20 seconds of receiving
it with the penalty of a ball called if he fails to do
so, this rule is rarely, if ever, enforced. |
