http://sanfrancisco.giants.mlb.com/...

Above is a link to the layout/seating of AT&T Park in San Francisco.

Bottom 9, or bottom of an extra inning, runner on first. He's fast runner, say Crawford.

Giants batter hits one just fair down first base line and it's headed towards section 103, or 104.

A fan reaches over and touches the live ball. Now:

Q1: If the fan is dressed in obvious Giants gear, is it a ground rule double? Does the runner on first score?

Q2: If the fan is dressed in opposing team's gear, is it a ground rule double? Does the runner on first gets sent home for the winning run?

Q3: If the fan loyalty can't be identified, or is wearing a third team's gear, what is the call?

What matters much more is what happens when a player catches a ball in the stands and it's covered with nacho cheese, as happened in San Diego?

SFG @ BOS (-185)

ATL @ CIN (-155)

CLE (-147) @ KC

SD @ STL (-207)

TOR (-190) @ ARZ

HOU (-165) @ OAK

4 players played in the Negro Baseball League but none have played since 1956. They also were selected by rather the Veterans Committee based on Negro league career (NLC) or Special committee on the Negro Leagues and the Pre-Negro League (SLNC): Cool Papa Bell, Oscar Charleston, Willard Brown and Cristobal Torriente.

The other 2 are Joe Kelley and Tommy McCarthy. McCarthy led the league in SB, PA and AB, but not anything else offensive. Joe Kelley led the NL in SB in 1896.

SFG @ BOS (-185) BoSox won.

ATL @ CIN (-155) Braves won.

CLE (-147) @ KC Cleveland won.

SD @ STL (-207) Postponed

TOR (-190) @ ARZ Toronto won.

http://www.sbnation.com/mlb/2016/7/...

154 games is about 5% reduction. Thoughts?

I like the current format as it, but if I had to change it to whatever I want, I would probably make it (assume 1 series = 3 games), 2 series (1 home and 1 away) against 5 interleague teams (same division, rotate every 3 years), 2 series against intraleague teams and 4 series against intradivision teams, so 138 game season. If you make it 6 series/intradivision team, then it's a 162 game season. But the benefit is this is that every team will face every other team at least every 3 years (wait, isn't that what's happening already).

Obviously there are tons of complications if any games are dropped or added from the MLB season, unless it's like Game 163 tiebreaker or something. But remember MLB technically only plays 54 games/season/team right now (it's just that each series is usually 3 games).

3H 3A vs your own League. 2H 2A vs the opposing league. Equal and fair schedule everyone plays everyone; and that would be a total of 144 games.

So, example, TOR would play 3H 3A vs every AL, and 2H 2A vs every NL.

Picture this, LAD@SF or Cubs@StL, you know the (opposing) team will be there once, this is your <ONLY> chance to boo them.

Guaranteed sell-outs. Owners can jack-up the ticket prices so high, it will compensate for the lost 18 games.

Think about that, on average, a team play 6 games a week, that 3 weeks. You can start the season later (avoid snow outs in Cleveland, or Cincinnati, or NY).

Some guy set foot on the Moon and proclaimed it was a small step, because NASA's lowest bidder made space shoes too small.

In another unrelated news, some pitcher hit a home run for the Giants.

< WannaBe: ... >

I like that idea better than mine. I'm under the assumption that there has to be more intradivision games than any other type of games, but it can be an equal amount. And yes, I imagine that any lost games can be compensated by the lower supply.

I just found out that in some teams in the NFL, you have to reserve a spot or whatever in advance. There seems to be a backlog of about 30 years for Green Bay tickets. Although if Green Bay only has a population of around 100 K, and Lambeau Field can hold about 80 K, what's the backlog?

But what's your thought on my postseason suggestion? Using the standings as of the end of Jul/19, here are the postseason matchups: CLE - KC, TEX - DET, BAL - HOU, BOS - TOR, SF - PIT, CHC - STL, WSH - NYM, LAD - MIA.

It doesn't quite make sense to me that the league with the longest season has the shortest postseason, with the fewest teams allowed too. I mean, by the All-Star Break, almost half the league realistically, won't make the postseason.

Imagine, if you will, NFL now have 4 divisions, if only the division champs qualify, (yes, two less teams in the play-offs, one less round) each and every of the 16 regular season game's importance just got bigger.

True. A benefit of not having more teams make the postseason is that most teams by the Trade Deadline will know if they are buyers or sellers. Right now, teams like the Yankees, 5 games out of a postseason spot, are sellers, as there seems to be a lot of demand for their closer, Aroldis Chapman. With 8 teams, they actually currently hold the 8th spot, and probably would be buyers.

5 years ago, these teams finished with a losing record; now, they are all within 3 games of a postseason spot (current format): BAL, WSH, NYM, FLA/MIA, PIT and HOU. Re-building!

In contrast, Dodgers seem to be buyers right now. It's kinda hard to follow a team that's in the opposite league and on the opposite side of the continent, but looks like Dodgers could use some pitching help. I mean, they're decent without Kershaw (FTR: they should not rush his return), but the other starters usually don't go deep into games, so the bullpen has done a lot of work (one of the starters Urias, who is under a pitch count too). Maybe a starter who can go long and more bullpen arms would be useful.

< Then again, you'd get some 9-7 team winning a very weak division, and a 10-6 or 11-5 team miss out because they are in a tougher division. >

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/1...

Something tells me maybe Manfred wants to leave a legacy, and he'll do things like basically address baseball's #1 concern: games are too long.

IMHO, if MLB really wanted to reduce time, how about reducing how long it takes to throw a bunch of pitches. Why does it take like 1 minute/pitch? Well, pitchers always got to step off the mound, batters adjust their gloves after looking at ball 1, etc. I heard there's some rule in MLB where the pitcher has like 12 seconds to pitch a ball or else a ball is called on a pitcher, but I never see it enforced. I'm sure it can be enforced though. If things like StatCast exist, then there can be a timer to time how long it takes a pitcher to throw a pitch.

There are other things that I don't mind taking up time, such as IBB. Coaching visits should be kept to a minimum, but they are regulated. Relief pitchers, if I were a manager, I would have a relief pitcher pitch to more than 1 batter every time (unless due to injury or something).

(and other stuff that I forgot about)

<Recent example, last year before Wild Card teams were eligible to make the postseason, the 1993 Giants (MLB) finished 103-59, one game back of the Braves, missing the postseason.>

On the other hand SF and Atlanta had a nerve-wracking pennant race, down to the last day, which wouldn't have happened with the wild card. They both would have made it. You give a little, you get a little.