Ghost Runner on 2nd Base Made Permanent By MLB in 2023

 In what was seen as somewhat of a controversial move, Major League Baseball has decided to make the Ghost Runner rule permanent when extra innings occur.  Originally implanted during the pandemic laden season in 2020, the rule allows the offensive team to place a runner on 2nd base beginning in the top of 10th inning.  The purpose of the rule was to limit wear on pitchers, and maximize the use of a limited player pool due to pandemic limitations.  In a supposed effort to preserve as many resources as possible for baseball clubs, the MLB competition committee voted to implement the ghost runner rule on a long term basis.  Consequently, it would appear the offenses will have a distinct advantage over pitchers, and MLB has apparently succumbed to the demands of a now, impatient society.  Therefore, baseball is watering down the strategy and fabric of the game.

Though initially adapted to ease the strain on rosters due to potential widespread illness and injury, the ghost runner regulation will now become a permanent fixture in the Major League game. Theoretically, according to MLB sources, it is meant to maintain the health of each team’s expensive rosters.  However, it is my contention that extra inning games do not occur frequently enough to impact health outcomes of players.  In fact, each team may play only a handful of games per season.  Is the minimal risk of injury due to extra innings worth depleting the integrity of such a great game? Definitely not.

Having such a peculiar rule implemented in baseball makes parts of the game inordinately unfair.  First of all, the offense doesn’t have to earn their way on base through a hit or walk.  Therefore, the offense can score a run on a single hit, rather than stringing several together.  On the other hand, a pitcher has almost no room for error, and must perform perfectly to give their team a chance to win.  Furthermore, such undo pressure placed on a pitcher could increase the chance of injury, the very thing MLB is claiming they are trying to avoid.  To me, such a rule that provides such unfair advantages is no way to resolve the outcome of a professional baseball game performed at the highest level.

Everyone knows that professional sports is about more than competition, it’s about making money.  With that being said, is the ghost rule purely about protecting players?  My guess is no.  Needless to say, we have a society that is quickly evolving into a people of impatience that has an insatiable appetite for instant gratification.  As a result, I think professional organizations in baseball feel they must cater to the whims of today’s fan in order to remain relavent, and maintain financial viability.  Is the ghost rule a solution to speed up games?  No, I think there are numerous other adjustments that can be made that would not affect the overall manner in which Major League Baseball is played.

For a time, there was a purpose for putting a man on 2nd base in extra innings.  It served its purpose in compensating for shortened rosters due to unforeseen circumstances.  Because of these needed, supposedly temporary changes, it altered the way the game was played, unintentionally creating certain advantages and disadvantages for certain players on the field.  The fact that the powers at be haven’t permanently eliminated this rule lays bare the ulterior motives MLB has for maintaining such an unusual rule that tears at the purity of the game.