FiveThirtyEight: Struggles with the Clock and Bat Speed - Guess Hitting

[weams]

In the absence of the muscles needed to adjust to pitches in the air, these more seasoned sluggers might make up for it with experience. By taking their time to anticipate what pitch is coming next, Ortiz and others like him may be able to guess where a pitch will go before it leaves the pitcher?s hand. In this way, experience can compensate for deteriorating bat speed.

http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/big-papi-needs-more-time-to-think/

[weams]

Thus far, the much-discussed batter’s box rule changes have had at most only a minor effect on the overall time of games. For individual batters, however, the impact of the rule has been anywhere from negligible to remarkable. Some hitters already had quick routines and didn’t need to make any alterations. Others liked to step off the plate after every pitch, a habit that the new rules outlaw.

The older veterans have been the most affected by the rule change. I’ve shown before that older batters are the players most likely to dawdle, the 39-year-old Ortiz included. From last year to this year, Ortiz has decreased his time between pitches by almost two full seconds, according to Fangraphs.1 Given Ortiz’s rather vocal opposition to the idea of cutting any time from his routine, it seems reasonable to believe that this was a change the new rules forced upon Big Papi.

Routines.

[DrungoHazewood]

Routines.

That's extra bonus benefits right there. Not only is the pace of the game increased, which is a great thing, but Ortiz is annoyed. Which is spectacular.

[InsideCoroner]

That's extra bonus benefits right there. Not only is the pace of the game increased, which is a great thing, but Ortiz is annoyed. Which is spectacular.

A true win/win scenario. Ideally we can keep doing both, but if I were forced to choose just one of them to stay in place, I would probably opt for the latter.

[weams]

A true win/win scenario. Ideally we can keep doing both, but if I were forced to choose just one of them to stay in place, I would probably opt for the latter.

Three.