Kuzul

If nothing else, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has been controversial since he became the 10th man to hold baseball’s top spot in January 2015.

He has made “pace of play” his cause celebre, an issue he believes is one of game’s biggest burdens. But in addressing it, Manfred has proposed radical changes that would be to the detriment of the issue at hand.

The use of a 20-second pitch clock, instituting reliever limits and a reduction in defensive shifting are all being considered by MLB’s top minds.

“I think you could make an argument that more relievers have lengthened the game,” Manfred told USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale. “More pitching changes has slowed down the pace of the game and the unbelievable effectiveness of some of those relief pitchers has robbed some of the action from the game.”

Essentially, the commissioner is asking: How can we create more offense yet shorten games? He’s looking for a silver bullet.

There isn’t one.

Manfred needs to give consideration to baseball’s biggest conundrum: Unlike other sports where offense sells tickets, it lengthens a baseball game.

More runs mean longer innings. Longer innings mean a longer game. It’s as simple as first-grade arithmetic. And it’s important to note that runs per game are at their highest since 2009.

The downside of each of the three aforementioned changes is they limit a team’s run-preventing capabilities. That could result in more offense. So much more offense that it could counteract—or even outweigh—any efforts to reduce the length of games.

The NFL instituted the two-point conversion and rules to protect its quarterbacks. The NBA has added the three-point line, shot clock and eliminated hand checking.

Each of those rule changes was put in place to promote offense. But football and basketball have game clocks. So even in cases where scoring calls for a stoppage in the clock, an increase in offense doesn’t have nearly as drastic an effect as it does in baseball.

Essentially, the absence of a game clock allows for an unlimited amount of offense. On Aug. 22, the Los Angeles Dodgers scored 18 runs against the Cincinnati Reds in a nine-inning contest that lasted four hours, two minutes.

A 20-second pitch clock might limit a pitcher’s ability to go through an entire set of signs with his catcher. That could force him to throw a pitch he doesn’t want to throw. The clock could also cause a pitcher to rush and hang a breaking ball up in the zone.

This could all result in more offense. We just don’t know to what degree.

Pitching changes and shifting take time. They are also favorable defensively. So, in theory, limiting the use of both reduces pace of play yet also promotes offense.

But given the relationship between offense and game time in baseball, there’s a sweet spot.

Major league pitchers have never been put on a clock, nor have managers been limited as to the use of their bullpens. So we have no statistical data that suggests how much more offense it may create.

There has been some experimentation with a pitch clock and data does suggest that it may shorten games, per this piece by Sam Dykstra of MiLB.com.

But countless times we have seen a pitcher struggle. No pitcher has his best stuff every outing.

If a team is out of pitching changes and a reliever is struggling to get outs, he could be stranded. There’s no telling how long an inning could go on under those circumstances. 

That same Dodgers-Reds game is a perfect example. Cincinnati pulled starting pitcher Homer Bailey after he allowed six runs on nine hits in 2.1 innings of work. If there were limits on relief pitchers, the Reds might have had to leave Bailey out there.

And how many more runs would Los Angeles have scored? How much longer would that game have gone on? These rule changes set baseball on a slippery slope. It’s unclear if there’s a plateau, making it too risky. 

Manfred has to consider that he may not be able to fix all of the game’s problems with one swing of the bat. It will more likely take targeted changes that have a more certain outcome. Sometimes it’s best to string base hits together in an effort to score a run.

Try hitting for power and you risk striking out. On these issues, Manfred cannot afford to swing and miss.

Seth Gruen is a national baseball columnist for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @SethGruen.

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Since baseball is played nearly every day from April through October, there’s nothing the sport holds in higher regard than its streaks.

There have been streaks of all kind this year—the team variety and those more individual in nature—but arguably the most impressive string of the 2016 season came to a close this week.

Baltimore Orioles closer Zach Britton saw his streak of 43 straight games without giving up an earned run snapped Wednesday.

Read on to find out about everyone else in baseball who went streaking this week.

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Kyle Hendricks is like the frosting on a birthday cake. Peanut butter on toast. Hot fudge on a sundae.

The Chicago Cub is the best starting pitcher on MLB‘s top team, which stood 78-45 through Sunday’s action.

Though the right-hander boasts an MLB-best 2.16 ERA, the Cubs would likely still be firmly in playoff position without him. Chicago is loaded with position players who were heralded as the organization’s future when they were climbing the minor league ranks a few years ago. First baseman Anthony Rizzo, third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant and shortstop Addison Russell are just a few of those players who received more fanfare than Hendricks to start the season.

The California native is also overshadowed by brand-name pitchers Jon Lester and John Lackey, who have World Series rings, and Jake Arrieta, who is the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner.

No one ever tells you how much they love the hot fudge; they tell you how great the sundae tastes. Hendricks is a cog in the machine. He’s not the horse pulling the cart like, say, the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ Clayton Kershaw was before he got hurt.

Look, maybe numbers sometimes do lie, but they don’t in this case: Hendricks’ 1.00 WHIP ranks second in MLB, and his .208 batting average against is sixth.

But oftentimes, awards and accolades in sports are entirely more complex than the numbers indicate.

Like a preseason-unranked college football team trying to climb its way into the College Football Playoff, preconceived notions have made it difficult to turn up the volume on Hendricks’ 2016 campaign.

The 26-year-old doesn’t have the eye-popping resume one would expect of an ace. The Texas Rangers selected Hendricks in the eighth round of the 2011 draft. He was traded to the Cubs with another minor leaguer for Ryan Dempster in 2012 and didn’t make his MLB debut until he was 24.

This season, his fastball has averaged 89.7 mph, according to FanGraphs. By pitching standards, he’ll never be voted prom king. But he has proved he can be the life of the party.

He has handled the best lineups MLB has to offer. Hendricks pitched six shutout innings, allowing only two hits and two walks, against the Washington Nationals on May 5. Against the Rangers on July 15, he also pitched six shutout innings and surrendered just three hits and two walks.

This after a 2015 season that raised questions about his ability to be a reliable starter in a pennant race.

Last year, Hendricks had a 3.95 ERA in 32 starts. In Game 2 of the National League Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals, he allowed three home runs in 4.2 innings. He was slightly better in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series, giving up one home run and two earned runs in four innings against the New York Mets. Those performances were a big reason the Cubs signed Lackey to a two-year, $32 million contract in December.

Unexpectedly, however, Hendricks has answered the bell.

But only recently have the Cubs given him a chance to add Cy Young moments to his 2016 resume and, even minimally, prove he has the ability to lead Chicago’s pitching staff.

While Hendricks’ numbers put him in consideration for the team’s best arm, Cubs manager Joe Maddon hasn’t used him accordingly.

Through his final start in July, Hendricks had been given just a few opportunities to pitch at least seven innings, and Maddon often pulled him when his pitch count was well below 100. One of those outings came against the Philadelphia Phillies on May 28, and Hendricks pitched a complete game.

The ability to go deep into games has long been the mark of a top-of-the-rotation pitcher. Hendricks may have it, but he hasn’t had consistent opportunities to prove he does.

Don’t place blame on Maddon. It’s not his job to do what’s best for Hendricks’ notoriety. Maddon’s task is to manage the team.

Though Hendricks has been the best of Chicago’s starters, the rotation as a whole has been outstanding. Through Monday, Cubs starters were the best in MLB in ERA (2.89) and batting average against (.211).

Naturally, that has kept Chicago’s bullpen fresh. Cubs relievers have pitched a mere 351.2 innings—the second-fewest in baseball—and have the third-lowest batting average against (.219). So solid relief pitching has been available to Maddon. Given that people viewed Hendricks as the club’s fourth starter prior to the season, it made sense for the Chicago manager to use the bullpen on days Hendricks started.

A confluence of events has deafened the tone of Hendricks’ season.

But in August, Maddon has used him more like an ace. It’s a test of whether Hendricks can pitch deep into games.

On Aug. 1, Hendricks pitched a complete-game shutout against the Miami Marlins. In his next start, he surrendered just three hits and one earned run in 7.1 innings against the Oakland Athletics. In his last two, Hendricks has pitched 13 combined innings, striking out 15 and allowing only nine hits, three earned runs and one walk.

Maddon has given Hendricks more latitude, and he’s hit triple-digit pitch counts in three of his last four outings after doing so just seven times in his first 20 starts.

Hendricks is taking that next step toward top-of-the-rotation status as the organization starts to evaluate how it wants to set up its rotation for the playoffs.

The loaded Cubs led the National League Central by 12 games through Sunday and are highly likely to have that luxury.

And as Hendricks continues to prove his value, maybe you’ll be reminded to lick the frosting first the next time you eat cake.

Seth Gruen is a national baseball columnist for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @SethGruen.

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The Washington Nationals lead the NL East largely because second baseman Daniel Murphy is having an MVP-caliber year.

It’s overshadowed the contributions of Jayson Werth, who extend his on-base streak to 46 games on Thursday, as valuable a streak as it is impressive.

But Werth wasn’t the only player this week to hit a major milestone. Who were the others?

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Predicting some of the division races that are all but official—such as the National League Central—would just be adding fluff to any set of MLB playoff projections. 

But several races will provide us with great theater during the latter portion of the MLB season. So, whether you agree or not, consider this your Playbill for baseball’s hotly contested races.

But to agree or disagree you have to read on, right?

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CHICAGO — In sports, we’re used to losses prompting overly emotional and one-word reactions. Not so for the Chicago Cubs under manager Joe Maddon.

Sure, a baseball season is 162 games, but the sport still has its share of teams that allow a loss to linger. Maddon said he has been part of teams like that, so his objective when he joined Chicago in October 2014 was to keep emotions on an even keel.

The Cubs limped to the All-Star break this season, losing nine of 11, but they recently won 11 straight games and 13 of 15 overall.

“One of my main objectives with any team that I’m with is that you win hard for 30 minutes or lose hard for 30 minutes and you move on,” Maddon said Monday. “I don’t see anything productive about carrying a loss to the next day.

“You have to be intentionally upset, surly because you lost yesterday. You can’t smile. All that stuff is absolutely insane to me.”

Maddon explained all this while wearing a shirt that read “Try Not to Suck,” a phrase he has championed in an effort to keep things light. But while he is undoubtedly Mr. Cool in baseball’s managerial ranks, his influence is only worth so much on the field.

Every team needs talent.

The Cubs’ starting staff (3.15 ERA, .213 batting average against) and defense have both been among baseball’s best. According to FanGraphs, the Cubs lead baseball with a 49.5 ultimate zone rating (UZR) and 42.5 defensive runs above average (Def).

Chicago’s UZR is 15.3 points better than the second-ranked Toronto Blue Jays‘. Only three teams have a Def above 30, and the Cubs are the only club with one above 40.

“Our pitching staff is fun to play behind,” third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant said. “They keep you in it. We’re always on our toes. They work quick. They throw strikes. So far our defense has been really good. So from an offensive standpoint, if we go out there and get two or three runs one day with the pitchers we have, I think we have a really good chance to win.”

As evidence, during their 11-game winning streak, the Cubs scored five runs or fewer eight times.

Beyond the stats, Maddon’s ability to keep things in perspective has been a big plus.

“The good teams come in, you don’t even know if they won or lost,” Maddon said. “So that’s the point I’ve been trying to get across here. That’s the point I got across at the previous stop [Tamp Bay].

“It makes no sense to me. I can’t go there. We play too many games, and I think the group that shows up normally on a daily basis has the best chance of avoiding those bad moments.”

Seth Gruen is a national baseball columnist for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @SethGruen.

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The careers of two huge names in baseball, the Texas Rangers’ Prince Fielder and New York Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez, came to their respective conclusions this week.

Qualifying the careers of both will certainly be a popular topic in baseball circles over the coming weeks.

But with much still to be determined in the 2016 season, other storylines continued to percolate. What teams and players made headlines this week?

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There weren’t many who thought Dylan Bundy could substantially contribute to the Baltimore Orioles this season. And that list of people included the organization and Bundy himself.

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Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig has largely been a mystery since he made his MLB debut in 2013.

He has flashed unbelievable talent and athleticism that suggests he could be among baseball’s best to play the game. But off-the-field drama, injuries and a questionable work ethic have gotten in the way of that.

This past week, the Dodgers decided he will have to figure it out elsewhere, at least for the time being.

The team demoted him to Triple-A.

But this week saw other players arrive back with MLB clubs and some choose to leave them on their own accord. Who might they be?

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To baseball fans east of the Mississippi River, San Francisco is a place where luck strikes in even years and baseballs splash into McCovey Cove.

It isn’t until October that the San Francisco Giants crash sports pages around the country. So it’s not surprising that their aggressive trade-deadline moves went unheralded. Organizations such as the Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers, both aggressive buyers, and even the New York Yankees, deadline sellers, received more attention.

But consider this notice—for those in the eastern part of the country or those westward who are mired in NFL training camp battles—that the trades the Giants made in the week leading up to Monday’s non-waiver deadline will help them edge the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West race.

On July 28, San Francisco acquired Eduardo Nunez—a player capable of moving all over the diamond—from the Minnesota Twins. Then on Monday, as the deadline neared, the Giants acquired left-handed reliever Will Smith from the Milwaukee Brewers and left-handed starting pitcher Matt Moore from the Tampa Bay Rays.

Nunez is hitting .290/.321/.430 and adds another bat to an offense that ranks in the top half of MLB in most relevant offensive categories, but is most notably fourth in on-base percentage (.333). Adding Nunez allowed the Giants to deal Matt Duffy, who is on the disabled list, in the Matt Moore deal.

Adding left-handers to the pitching staff, though, should give the Giants the edge over the second-place Dodgers.

San Francisco and Los Angeles play nine more times this season, including the final series of the regular season, a three-game set at AT&T Park.

Since no series will be more important in deciding the NL West crown, the Giants had to make sure they’d match up well in those games.

The Dodgers’ two best hitters this season in terms of batting average, shortstop Corey Seager and first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, both hit lefty. The difference in their performance against right- and left-handed pitchers is staggering.

Seager is hitting .328/.387/.551 against righties but only .256/.302/.462 against lefties. Gonzalez is batting .293/.376/.428 against righties but .247/.311/.330 against lefties.

Gonzalez is hitting .293 against the Giants this season with four doubles and six RBI in 10 games.

Until the trade deadline, Madison Bumgarner was the only left-handed pitcher in the San Francisco rotation, and Javier Lopez was the only left-hander in the bullpen.

Both San Francisco pitching additions were vital, as teams look to play more situational ball in the final months of a division race. When Moore starts, it prevents opponents from stacking their lineups with left-handed hitting. Every opposing manager knew San Francisco’s staff was largely right-handed, which gave opposing left-handed hitters an advantage even after manager Bruce Bochy pulled a righty starter.

Smith allows Bochy a late-inning southpaw that gives the Giants an advantage against most left-handed bats. Though Smith has been uncharacteristically bad against left-handed hitting this season, he has been solid in those match ups throughout his career. In Smith’s career, he has limited left-handed hitters to a .254 average. 

And the moves will not only help the Giants when they play the Dodgers, but they will also enjoy more lefty-lefty matchups across the board.

Of course, as all contenders do at the trade deadline, the Dodgers made moves, too.

But while the Giants seemingly boosted a contending team, it appeared as if Los Angeles tried to slap gauze on a bleeding roster.

The Dodgers have been without ace Clayton Kershaw, who has been on the disabled list since June 28 with what the team called a “mild disc herniation,” per Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. Until the injury, he had been by far baseball’s best pitcher, boasting a 1.79 ERA, 1.65 FIP and 0.727 WHIP, per FanGraphs. In 16 starts this season, Kershaw had issued only nine walks.

The team announced Wednesday that it placed Kershaw on the 60-day disabled list, a procedural move that nonetheless spurs more speculation that he will not return in 2016. Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times shares the sentiment.

In anticipation of Kershaw’s continued absence, the club acquired left-handed starter Rich Hill from the Oakland A’s on Monday. Though Hill, 36, is enjoying a comeback season with a 2.25 ERA in 14 starts, he is hardly a replacement for Kershaw.

The three-time Cy Young Award winner made it through at least seven innings in all but two of his starts this season. He went six innings in those two outings, including his most recent effort against the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 26.

L.A. can’t expect any replacement to be that consistent, which means the bullpen will be taxed more entering the final months of the season. There is a lot of pressure on Hill not only to stay healthy, but to continue to pitch at a high level.

The same deal that brought Hill to Los Angeles included outfielder Josh Reddick. He hit .296/.368/.449 with the A’s. His trade was a result of another disappointing season from Yasiel Puig.

The latest episode in the ongoing soap opera with Puig saw the team officially demote him to Triple-A on Wednesday, and Reddick is an improvement over Puig’s .260/.320/.386 slash line.

But Reddick also bats lefty and hits .167/.247/.167 against southpaw pitching. So while the move may help Los Angeles, San Francisco’s transactions appear to counteract his addition.

On one hand, the Dodgers made their moves to play catch-up. They wanted to get back to where they were in June with a healthy Kershaw and Puig hitting .333/.371/.455.

On the other hand, the Giants gained a springboard from their trades.

With San Francisco’s recent organizational success, baseball fans might assume they’ll see the Giants when the postseason rolls around. But know that when they’re playing in October this year, moves of the past week will be what got them there.      

Seth Gruen is a national baseball columnist for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @SethGruen.

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