Instant replay was first implemented in Major League Baseball for the 2008 season, in an effort to expedite game play while officiating games more accurately. Last season, the system was expanded to allow managers to "challenge" certain plays in dispute. The cause was helped even further in conjunction with Major League Baseball's new Replay Command Center in New York City, which allowed the umpire crew to remain on the field, while getting information on the play via headset.
It appears as though baseball will take a step further on the "speeding-up-the-game" process for the 2015 season. According to FOX Sports, a 20-second pitch clock will be implemented at the Double-A and Triple-A levels.
Multiple players and coaches told FOX Sports recently that they found the pitch clock to be effective and not disruptive to the flow of the game.
Major League Baseball Advanced Media will pay for the clocks, according to one source. Such an expenditure would require the approval of the owners.
If the ball is held for too long, an automatic "ball" will be called.
FOX Sports adds that the pitch clock will not be coming to the Major Leagues next season, however owners meeting today in Phoenix can "vote to approve a particular course of action". Until an approval from the union, no changes will be made official.
A pitching clock is not the only change that will come into effect next season in the minors. A new rule will require the batter to keep one foot in the box throughout the entirety of their at-bat. Additionally, there will be a time limit on pitching changes, as well as on breaks in-between innings.
All of these rules, including the time-clock, were beta tested during the 2014 Arizona Fall League. One game which used this new technology in October took two hours and 14 minutes to play.
Matt Rappa (@mattrappa) is a contributor to Philliedelphia.com.
