The Major League Baseball Players’ Association issued a statement blaming the recently implemented pitch clock for elbow injuries in pitchers.
The MLB's pitch clock is a rule that was implemented in 2023 to speed up the game. The goal of the pitch clock is to cut down on dead time between pitches and to make games faster and more exciting to watch.
"Despite unanimous player opposition and significant concerns regarding health and safety, the commissioner's office reduced the length of the pitch clock last December, just one season removed from imposing the most significant rule change in decades," Union Director Tony Clark said in a statement.
The comment arises following a lieu of recent pitcher injuries. New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, Atlanta Braves ace Spencer Strider, and Baltimore Orioles Kyle Bradish are among the pitchers to deal with elbow injuries to start the 2024 season, with Strider’s injury ending his season early.
The MLB issued a statement countering the claim.
“This statement ignores the empirical evidence and much more significant long-term trend, over multiple decades of velocity and spin increases that are highly correlated with arm injuries," an MLB representative responded.
This is just the second season that the pitch clock has been used in Major League Baseball, and MLB findings show that the clock shortened games by over twenty minutes, Statistica reports.
Polling conducted by the Seton Hall Sports Poll shows fans believed games were too long prior to the pitch clock.
54 percent of avid MLB fans believed games were too long prior to the introduction of the pitch clock. Similarly, 57 percent of avid MLB fans would watch more baseball games if they were shorter.
Polling a year later shows fans are in favor of pitch clock implementation.
42 percent of avid MLB fans believe games are too long, data from the Seton Hall Sports Poll shows. This is a 15-percent decrease in fans who believed games are too long.
It remains to be seen if any more changes will be made to the pitch clock.
Justin Lotito writes for the Setonian's sports section. He can be reached at justin.lotito@student.shu.edu.
