Stand down, baseball traditionalists. At least one major rule change will not be coming to MLB this season.
Friday, USA Today reported that the earliest we may see the National League add a designated hitter is 2022, as MLB's current collective bargaining agreement runs through the 2021 season.
In fact, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred suggested at Friday that any drastic rule changes will not come in 2019. Instead, the league is focusing on pace-of-play, such as adding a pitch clock, according to AP.
“Some of these items need to be part of broader discussions that certainly will continue after opening day, and I hope we can focus on some of the issues that need to get resolved quickly in the interim,” Manfred said.