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10 Biggest Rule Changes in MLB History: 2023 Edition

What are the biggest rule changes in MLB history? These rulebook changes have helped to shape what the game is today, keeping baseball engaging and relevant.

Biggest Rule Changes in MLB

These rule changes helped to shape Major League Baseball into what it is today. Let’s take a look at the 10 biggest rule changes of all time.

10. Mound and Strike Zone Changes (1969)

Pitchers completely dominated the 1968 MLB season known as the “Year or the Pitcher”, led by Bob Gibson’s 1.12 ERA. The league reacted by making one of the biggest rule changes in baseball by lowering the mound by 5 inches, giving it a new height of 10 inches above baseline.

The rule changes had the desired effect and teams averaged 0.65 more runs per game in the 1969 season, an increase of almost 20%.

9. Free Agency (1976)

The reserve clause was in place in baseball since the late 1800s and gave teams the exclusive rights to a player. This meant that players weren’t free to enter into a contract with another team and that it was entirely up to a team to reassign, trade, sell or release a player.

Free agency was introduced in 1972 but it was the Seitz decision in 1975 that nullified the MLB’s reserve clause. Free agency in 1976 gave players more control over their careers and created an open market.

8. Interleague Play (1997)

Prior to the introduction of Interleague play in 1997 the only time American and National League teams would compete against each other in games that count toward official team or league records was in the World Series.

Although there are those against Interleague Play and the argument exists that it diminishes the prestige of the World Series, its introduction has opened up games between geographical rivals that may not have been seen in generations. 

7. Instant Replays  (2008)

The introduction of instant replays to overturn incorrect decisions is one of the biggest rule changes in MLB history. Taking place in 2008 it was the last of the four major sports leagues in the US to have a replay review system in place.

Under the most recent instant replay system each manager is allowed one challenge per game and will lose it only upon an unsuccessful challenge. From the eighth inning onward the umpires can initiate a replay review or for any boundary home run call.

6. Pitch Clock (2023)

One of the most significant rule changes in MLB history was the introduction of the pitch clock. Pitchers have 15 seconds with empty bases, or 20 seconds with runners on base to begin their motion or they’ll be charged with a ball.

Batters not in the box within eight seconds receive a strike. In 2021 an average MLB game took 3 hours 11 minutes. The introduction of the pitch clock has shaved about half an hour off game times which is keeping fans engaged. 

5. Base Size Increase (2023)

The MLB approved the changing of base sizes from 15 to 18 inches and introduced it in 2023. The changes at first, second and third base are designed to reduce player collisions and injuries as players have less time to reach full speed following the reduction of 4 1⁄2 inches between bases. 

Base size increases gives low-payroll teams a strategy to capitalize on. They can field younger, cheaper and faster players to steal bases, and the the MLB rule change gives the league another  weapon to keep fans engaged. 

4. The Designated Hitter Rule (1973)

One of the biggest rule changes in the MLB was the introduction of the Designated Hitter (DH) rule allowing for the addition of a tenth man to take the place of a pitcher in a batting line-up.

It had immediate effect with the first ever designated hitter Larry Eugene Hisle hitting a home run with two men on base, then a grand slam in a preseason game. Designated hitters scored 120 points higher than the pitchers they replaced in the first season of the new rule.

Almost 50 years after the American League first introduced the rule the National League adopted a designated hitter position in 2022 making the rule universal. 

3. Steroid Bans (2005)

Steroids first entered baseball sometime in the late 1980s resulting in offensive records being smashed. Although drugs were outlawed in 1971 in baseball, steroids weren’t specifically banned until 1991.

It wasn’t until 2003 that major league players were tested for performance enhancing drugs but suspensions only ranged from a 10-day ban for first-time offenders, to a one-year ban for a fourth offence. Only in 2005 were tough penalties introduced. 

For positive results to steroids a player will receive a 50-game suspension for a first time offence, 100 games on a second positive test and a lifetime suspension from the MLB upon a third.

2. Ending the Baseball Color Line (1947)

Although not technically a rule, the ending of the color line in baseball is one of the most significant moments in Major League Baseball history. General racism during the late 19th century influenced the high-minor International League to ban the signing of black players in 1887.

In the MLB there was no written rule segregating African-American players from the league but it was a widely known understanding between teams which ultimately saw the creation of the first Negro National League in 1920.

It took Jackie Robinson to break down the “baseball color line” in 1947, ending 60 years of segregation. He went on to feature in the Dodgers first World Series championship in 1955.

1. Deadball Era Ends (1920)

The best baseball player of all time Babe Ruth defied the deadball era to hit 29 home runs in 1919. For everyone else, it was a time of slower and strategic swinging and games filled with singles and doubles. The biggest rule change in MLB history was introduced in 1920, outlawing “doctored” pitches and putting to an end the spitball.

No longer was the same ball used all game. The live-ball era was born and Ruth hit 54 home runs with the new rule changes helping baseball regain relevance and to explode in popularity.

Matt Ieriko

Matt Ieriko is a freelance writer who’s evolved his lifelong passion for sport into the creation of WolfgangSport.com in 2020 – an American sports blog covering the NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, MLS and more. As an Australian, he’s always been fascinated with the cultural differences and global significance of sports in America.

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