![Pitch clock! (16998109219)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/db/Pitch_clock%21_%2816998109219%29.jpg)
A pitch clock is used in
college baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...
and
Minor League Baseball to limit the amount of time a
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...
uses before he throws the ball to the
hitter
In baseball, batting is the act of facing the opposing pitcher and trying to produce offense for one's team. A batter or hitter is a person whose turn it is to face the pitcher. The three main goals of batters are to become a baserunner, to driv ...
. This is one measure that has accelerated the
pace of play
Pace of play is an issue concerning college baseball and professional baseball regarding the length of games.
Background
Game length in Major League Baseball (MLB) has increased over time, with the 1988 New York Yankees season, 1988 New York Yank ...
.
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB) will begin using a pitch clock in the season.
Examples
In
college baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...
, the
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...
experimented with using pitch clocks in 2010. Pitchers were given twenty seconds to throw the pitch, or a ball would be added to the
count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
. Similarly, a batter stepping out of the
batter's box
A baseball field, also called a ball field or baseball diamond, is the field upon which the game of baseball is played. The term can also be used as a metonym for a baseball park. The term sandlot is sometimes used, although this usually refers ...
with less than five seconds on the clock will be assessed an additional strike. After the 2010 season, the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
sought to make the pitch clocks mandatory, and instituted it for the 2011 college baseball season, but only for when there are no
runners on base.
Pitch clocks made their professional debut in the
Arizona Fall League
The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fill ...
in 2014. On January 15, 2015,
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB) announced it would institute a 20-second pitch clock in
Minor League Baseball for
Double-A and
Triple-A teams during the 2015 season. Pitchers were given twenty seconds to throw the pitch, with the punishment of a
ball
A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but can sometimes be ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used f ...
awarded to the batter if not followed. Along with other rule changes addressing the
pace of play
Pace of play is an issue concerning college baseball and professional baseball regarding the length of games.
Background
Game length in Major League Baseball (MLB) has increased over time, with the 1988 New York Yankees season, 1988 New York Yank ...
, the clocks contributed to a 12-minute reduction in game times at those levels between the 2014 and 2015 seasons, compared to the leagues that did not use the clock, which saw game times change from an increase of three minutes per game to a decrease in five minutes per game. Game times increased in 2016 and 2017, but were still faster than games in 2014.
[
The independent Atlantic League uses a 12-second pitch clock.
]
MLB and the MLB Players Association (MLBPA) discussed the possibility of introducing the pitch clock at the major league level for the 2018 season. MLB opted against imposing it unilaterally, over the opposition of the MLBPA. MLB implemented a 20-second pitch clock in spring training
Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...
games in 2019. The collective bargaining agreement
A collective agreement, collective labour agreement (CLA) or collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is a written contract negotiated through collective bargaining for employees by one or more trade unions with the management of a company (or with an ...
reached to end the 2021–22 Major League Baseball lockout
The 2021–22 Major League Baseball lockout was the ninth work stoppage in Major League Baseball (MLB) history. It began at 12:01 a.m. EST on December 2, 2021, after MLB owners voted unanimously to enact a lockout upon the expiration o ...
included the possibility of introducing a pitch clock as of the 2023 MLB season. Four active players, six persons appointed by MLB, and one umpire were formed into a Joint Competition Committee to review and recommend any changes to playing rules. On September 8, 2022, MLB announced a set of rules changes that will take effect in 2023, including the use of a pitch clock.
In addition to its primary use to time pitches, the clock is also used to indicate the time remaining in a media timeout for commercials (usually between each half of an inning), and will also be used to time the warmup period on the mound for a relief pitcher
In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...
coming out of the bullpen
In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if t ...
. There will also be multiple clocks displayed throughout a major league stadium on the same timing system allow full visibility of the pitch clock for players, coaches, umpires, press, and spectators throughout the venue, with implementation within the graphics of television broadcasts to be determined at the start of the season.
See also
*Play clock
A play clock, also called a delay-of-game timer, is a countdown clock intended to speed up the pace of the game in gridiron football. The offensive team must put the ball in play by either snapping the ball during a scrimmage down or kicking the b ...
*Shot clock
A shot clock is a countdown timer used in a variety of games and sports, proving a set amount of time that a team may possess the object of play before attempting to score a goal. Shot clocks are used in several sports including basketball, wat ...
References
External links
*
{{Baseball
Baseball terminology
Baseball rules
Time measurement systems
Timers