It’s been said chicks dig the long ball. Fans also, in general, love offense no matter the sport. That’s why new MLB commissioner Rob Manfred is open to the idea of banning defensive shifts in effort to improve offense.
Defensive shifts aren’t anything new, of course, though in recent years have been taken to massive extremes. Los Angeles Dodgers manager Don Mattingly placed four players on the right side of second base last season against the San Diego Padres and you’ll routinely seen shortstops or even third baseman slide over for pull happy left-hand hitters.
Generally, the shifts work, especially since players like David Ortiz, Adrian Gonzalez and more don’t attempt to combat the shift. That’s part of the reason Manfred is open to banning the defensive alignment.
Rob Manfred on eliminating shifts. http://t.co/MJ8LSCOuqC
— joe lucia (@Joe_TOC) January 25, 2015
Baseball’s foundation has essentially been built off strategy so taking part of that away to improve the offensive numbers seems like a bit of a questionable decision, though on the same token there are a lot of fans/players/coaches who are frustrated with the defensive styling and wouldn’t mind to see it removed.
From a pure watchability standpoint, it would be a solid move to bring in more casual fans to MLB but for the number crunchers and stat heads, it’s a move many are opposed to.
