The game of Major League Baseball has been constantly changing over the last couple years. Many different rules or regulations have been introduced to either improve the game or make it safer for those participating, and this has brought a lot of controversy. Many agree, many do not. However, for all you baseball fans out there the most controversial rule has been the new "slide rule". The latest rule was added into section 6.01 of the Official Rule Book of Major League Baseball. The rule states that "if a runner does not engage in a 'bona fide slide' and initiates contact with the fielder for the purpose of breaking up a double play, he should be called for interference."
I am here to explain what exactly is a "bona fide slide" to Major League officials. In a perfect world, a double play would have no contact and no problems, therefore making no issues. However, that is not the case. Baseball has been around for over a century and the game is forever changing. Look back at any era of baseball, and runners will always be going in hard to second in order to potentially break up a double play. Good for the offense, bad for the fielder.
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Rewind to the MLB postseason in 2015. Game two of the NLDS. Chase Utley for the Los Angeles Dodgers is standing on first. The ball is hit almost directly up the middle forcing Daniel Murphy, the Mets second baseman, to range towards the base to make the play. If you've seen the play you already know the rest. In the attempt to break up the double play Chase Utley starts his slide after almost being at the base and goes wide of the bag to intentionally force a bad throw. However, the impact of this collision was so harsh it fractured the fibula of Shortstop Reuben Tejada.
This play was what pulled the trigger on the new slide rule. With so any rules being applied in sports all over the world to prevent injuries from happening, the MLB had to do something. There are still many gray areas with this rule. Sooner or later it will start the conversation of what exactly is a good slide or a bad slide?
As a current baseball player at the college level, it is easy for me to explain but also hard to understand. Personally, as a middle infielder I have taken part in many double plays and have been taken out, but not to the extent of what happened in the 2015 NLDS. I have been ran over and even flipped due to hard slides. When it comes to the rule, I do agree with it but only if it is applied correctly.
The rule is only to protect the players and prevent any further injuries due to the slides. Just like when Buster Posey got ran over at home and tore his ACL from a collision, the MLB banned all collisions to prevent injury. If officials and the league itself follow what the book states then there should be no problem. Middle infielders are taught to stay out of a runners slide-path. If he is in that slide path, they are almost giving their self up and become a sitting duck. Meaning that if they get taken out it is their fault. If the middle infielder stays clear of the path that runners are supposed to use to slide, and the runner still collides with him, then that is the only time I think there should be a call for obstruction. If the MLB uses this rule to eliminate all collisions at second, even if the fielder is in the baseline then they would be ruining an aspect of the game that can be entertaining.
Many times you'll also see runners over slide the bag to take out the middle infielder as well. Depending on where the throw is, the middle infielders will be forced to move to where it is thrown. My thought on over-sliding is that as long as there is no blatant attempt to aggressively take out the fielder it should be clean.
With all the controversy over the sliding, and being a current ball player my views are simply my own. Many others may either agree or disagree but this is a part of the game where there are many gray areas right now. I agree with the new slide rule, but only as long as it is used properly and not taken too far. Just recently, Jose Bautista recieved a knockout blow from Second Baseman Rougned Odor because Odor thought his slide was meant to take him out. If you watch the play, it was debatable whether it was clean or not. The only problem I see with the slide is that Bautista slid pretty late and completely over slid the bag. Odor managed to get out of the way but the slide still caused Odor to throw the ball away, and immediately after went after Bautista and delivered a right hand to the face.
All that we can do as viewers is discuss and debate about the topic. The MLB has the final call on whether these slides are clean or dirty. All in all, I believe that the new rule does not take away from the game as long as it is used properly and that runners adjust to it.
