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MLB is thinking about getting rid of the batting order in the ninth inning

Life as a baseball fan in the age of commissioner Rob Manfred means intermittently having to discuss his office’s bad ideas for rule changes. So strap in, because this one’s a doozy.

On his show Wednesday, radio host Rich Eisen said he was told by an MLB executive that his cohort is considering eliminating the batting order in the ninth inning so that managers can send up the best hitters with the game on the line. The goal would be to inject more drama into the late stages of games.

One #MLB executive told @richeisen about an idea to improve excitement in the game by allowing managers to put anyone up to bat in the 9th inning if trailing.