White Sox adapting to pitch clock

GLENDALE, Ariz. – The White Sox’ 5-4 victory over the Rangers Saturday at Camelback Ranch lasted two hours, 40 minutes, and it felt a little long by Cactus League 2023 standards.

Their first seven games had times of 2:32, 2:36, 2:33, 2:28, 2:32, 2:33, 2:26, an expected and welcome development thanks to the latest game-changer in baseball — the pitch clock. The average time of regular season games last season was 3:04, too slow for the good of the game, Major League Baseball determined.

Players initially dug in against the clock but with no other choice, are now adapting. Now, there’s no time to waste digging into the batter’s box.

If you’re White Sox pitcher Lance Lynn, who doesn’t waste much time between pitches, it’s no big deal.

“All that is in favor of me, it gets them in the box and ‘let’s go,’ Lynn said after his first Cactus League game.

Reynaldo Lopez, known to take longer between pitches with men on base, is already adjusting. He was called for a ball in his first Cactus League appearance for not beating the clock.

“I kind of looked at the clock all the time, kind of freaking out,” Lopez said.

“So now we have to be thinking, ‘just get the sign and go.’ ”

A 30-second timer between batters and time limit between pitches keeps things moving, not at a rapid-fire Mark Buehrle pace, but a snappy one that keeps defenders on their toes. With the timer, there’s no more dead-time seconds between pitches, no more pitchers or hitters going through lengthy routines.

“It’s actually good for the game,” Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. “It just brings alertness and focus to the game.”

“I love it,” three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer said after his first game with the clock.

Who knows, children and their grandparents might be awake long enough to see the ninth inning of a World Series game.

After receiving the ball from the catcher or umpire, pitchers must begin their motion within 15 seconds with the bases empty or within 20 seconds with runners on.

When the pitcher gets the ball back and the catcher and batter are in the circle around home plate after a pitch, play is ready to resume. Hitters need to be in the batter’s box with eight seconds left on the pitch clock, and they are limited to one timeout per plate appearance, and there is a 30-second timer running between hitters.  

Through Friday, Sox games averaged 2:30, seven minutes faster than the rest of MLB.

It will take getting used to. Angels star Shohei Ohtani admitted to being “a little confused.” Balls or strikes are assessed for violations, and one game ended with one.

The first violation came on Day 1, against Manny Machado when he faced Robbie Ray in the first inning of a Mariners-Padres game. Machado didn’t have both feet in the batter’s box when the timer was down to eight seconds and was issued an automatic strike.

“I’m going down in the history books,” Machado said. “Right at eight seconds, you’ve gotta be ready, engaged and looking at the pitcher.”

The clock was used in the minors last year, so it’s not foreign to everyone, Sox lefty Tanner Banks included.

But Banks said he was learning how to use the pitch clock to his advantage and how to settle in to avoid “feeling rushed or overwhelmed because you have to get a pitch off at a certain amount of time.”

“I did like it, the pace of play was definitely nice,” he said.

Banks also asked a good question. What will owners say if  shorter game times affects concession sales?

Maybe MLB hadn’t thought of that. They are thinking about the overall good of the game and fan interest, however. So maybe it will be worth it.

“The pitch clock is doing its job,” Lynn said.

“We’ll see how it goes as the year goes on.”