Three Rules Being Tested at Reno Aces Games You Have to See to Believe

Pitch Timer

Pitch timers will be featured at Greater Nevada Field this season to increase the pace of play. Pitchers and batters have to be ready by the time the pitch clock runs down, or they risk penalty (adding a ball to the count for pitchers’ penalty, and a strike to the count for batters’ penalty). If runners are on base, a pitcher will have extra time to throw each pitch, but there is a catch: if a pitcher attempts a pick-off or steps off the bag three times in the same at bat – and those attempts don’t result in an out - all baserunners advance. These rules were put into place during the 2021 Arizona Fall League and created, on average, a game time shorter by 20 minutes.

Larger Bases

First, second, and third base are getting bigger – 3 inches bigger, to be exact. The three bases will now be 18-inch squares, aimed to reduce injury stemming from base-running. On top of this, increasing the base size inherently decreases the distance baserunners have to travel, which has increased the rate of successful stolen bases attempts according to the 2021 Arizona Fall League data (cc: Nick Heath).

Automated Balls and Strikes

You heard that right – automated balls and strikes (ABS) are coming to Greater Nevada Field in 2022. Starting on May 17th, ABS will be put in place across all of the Pacific Coast League. Umpires will still be in place on all positions of the field they typically would be; however, they will now have the calls be communicated to them through the automated system. The strike zone will be created by approximating the strike zone called by high-level umpires.

Bonus: Defensive Positioning

The shift is no more (in Double-A and below, that is)! In addition to the rule changes mentioned for Triple-A this year, something that is occurring at the levels below Triple-A is the limiting of defensive positioning. Starting on Opening Day, defensive set-ups must include at least four players on the infield with two of those four players completely on either side of second base. The hope is to allow infielders to better showcase their athleticism, to increase batting average on balls in play, and to restore a more traditional set of aesthetics and outcomes on batted balls.