Los Angeles • Major League Baseball has offered to ditch its proposal for a pitch clock this year and also would go without one in 2019 if the average time of a nine-inning game drops to at least 2 hours, 55 minutes this season.
Speaking after a quarterly owners meeting ended Thursday, baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said owners authorized him to implement management's proposal from last offseason, which calls for a 20-second pitch clock this year, if an agreement cannot be reached with the players' association. Management has proposed a deal that would phase in new rules over the next three seasons
"We remain 100 percent committed to the idea that we need to make changes to address pace of game and that the best way to address pace of game for us, for the players and most importantly for our fans is to get an agreement with the players," Manfred said.