Batter gets strike because the baserunner was too slow, a breakdown
What Happened
In the bottom of the ninth inning, the New York Mets are trailing by one run against their division rivals. Jeff McNeil steps up to the plate with Pete Alonso on base, representing the tying run. As McNeil prepares to hit, the umpire calls a violation on Alonso for being too slow to get back to first base after a foul ball. The umpire explains that the new pitch clock rules require all players to be in position before the timer starts. Alonso's delay in returning to the bag has resulted in an automatic strike against McNeil, putting him in an 0-2 hole. Mets manager Buck Showalter comes out to discuss the call, but the umpire stands firm, stating that the rules must be enforced for the pace of play. McNeil is visibly frustrated, questioning what he did wrong, but the umpire maintains that the violation is on Alonso for taking too long to get back to first base. The crowd murmurs in confusion, as this type of violation is a new wrinkle in the game under the pitch clock implementation. Despite the setback, McNeil steps back in and battles the 0-2 count. He eventually puts the ball in play, hitting a ground ball that finds its way through the infield. Alonso scores from first base, tying the game and eliciting a celebratory reaction from the Mets dugout. The play highlights the delicate balance between enforcing the new rules and maintaining the flow of the game. While the umpire was correct in applying the violation, the Mets and their fans are left scratching their heads, unsure of how to adapt to this particular nuance of the pitch clock. As the season progresses, players and coaches will need to find a way to navigate these situations, ensuring the game's tempo is upheld without compromising the competitive spirit.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentwe had a lot of pitch clock violations
on opening day and I think you know you
expect that you know you want them to go
away eventually but what we didn't
expect was a base runner violation and
that's what we got here in the Mets game
McNeil's up this breakdown is brought to
you by DraftKings thank you to them
there's Runners on the corners Alonso is
at first and the pitch is fouled away
into the crowd Pete's digging for second
just moving with the ball goes into the
crowd mcdeal takes a deep breath it's
Owen one now everybody's waiting the
pitcher's ready to pitch the batter's
stepping in to get ready but he says hey
wait
Pete's not at first hold up so McNeil
kind of points this out to everyone like
yeah we're all ready to go but he's got
to get back to first come on now and the
umpire's like hey hey hey hey none of
that that's a violation no lollygagging
on my field so now it goes from Owen one
to Owen two and McNeil's like what what
did I do what happened I what they're
like he did it he did he's like well I'm
just waiting for him he's got to get
back he's like yeah I don't care we went
too slow
yeah what it's on him he's like it's on
him he's like it's on me what I did
something Buck's gonna come out and be
like what's going on I'm just gonna let
him know he took too long to get back
and Buck's gonna say he's got to get
back yes he got back too slow yes
Buck walks away it's not in the spirit
of it Alonso what happens if someone
gets hit we're just gonna keep going and
a fans hurt buck doesn't like it but I
guess technically this isn't the rule
book or it's in an article about the
rules the clock won't start until
everyone is back to their position so
it's not that time ran out it's that the
Umpire didn't even start the timer
because he's got to wait for everyone to
get set and the Pitcher was set and the
batter was set but he couldn't even
start the clock because Pete wasn't back
yet uh the first requirement for
starting the clock is that the pitcher
has the ball and is on the dirt the
mound but for instance if a ball is
fouled off down the line and the
fielders run after it and potentially
any base runners take off the clock for
the next pitch will not start until
everyone on the field has returned to
their position and the Umpire felt like
everyone else got to their position just
fine but Pete was lollygagging did it
matter 0-2 is a deep hole with two
strikes it couldn't matter but that's a
ball and then the next pitch McNeil puts
on the ground through the infield for a
run and Alonso likes it and he big old
smile because is that a hit last year I
found one I found a similar hit last
year in a similar spot the shortstop was
playing on the other side of the bag
though so it was an easy out whereas
this one shortstops not playing on the
other side of the bag and they both
gotta dive for it and they both miss it
and that's baseball in 2023 except
hopefully all the violations go away
everyone gets used to it the speed of
the game the tempo of the game the pace
of the game was awesome I love that I
don't like the violations I want them to
go away base runner violation didn't
know it existed now we all do thank you
to DraftKings for sponsoring this video
they're going to be sponsoring a ton as
we get deeper and deeper into the season
and more weird stuff happens and I am
very excited for that