As the 2020 Major League Baseball postseason began Tuesday afternoon, the leagues commissioner Rob Manfred went on record to say his mind is already on next year.
Due to a delayed start because of the coronavirus pandemic, Manfred and the MLB implemented a series of rule changes to the game to help the shortened season avoid as many bumps as possible. Manfred spoke this week about which of those changes baseball fans could see stick around when opening day arrives in 2021.
"If I had to handicap them, I think I would say that the extra-inning rule probably has the best chance of surviving," Manfred told Jon Heyman and Tony Gwynn Jr. of the Big Time Baseball podcast on Tuesday. "I think that most people came to realize that the rule adds a layer of strategy and sort of a focus at the end of the game that could be helpful to us over the long haul, so I give that one the best chance."
Manfred went on to say that the rule change that has the least likely chance to stick around is the seven inning double-headers.
"I hope we're all back in a world where nine-inning games make sense for us again and that we don't have to make that kind of adjustment," Manfred said.
The commissioner also weighed in on the highly polarizing issue of the designated hitter sticking around in the National League. Unlike the rules for extra-innings or double-headers, Manfred says a universal DH is a tough decision moving forward to make.
"If we eliminate the DH in the National League, it is a brand of baseball (that) becomes extinct, right?" Manfred asked. "Cause nobody plays without a DH other than the National League. So that does concern me."
Manfred hasn't been the only one to provide their thoughts on the rule changes sticking around next season. Recently, Pirates catcher Jacob Stallings voiced his stance on the topic, saying he wouldn't be opposed to seeing more of what he played through over the past three months.
"I personally like them," Stallings said. "I think seven-inning doubleheaders were a must, especially given as much time as the Cardinals had to miss. If they were playing nine-inning doubleheaders as much as they were, I don’t know how they would’ve gotten through the season, frankly. I like those, and personally I like the runner on second in extra innings. It speeds the game. You don’t get those 1-1 17-inning games where nobody can score for 10 innings. It’s always exciting and it speeds things up and saves pitching, so I like it.”