2025 Toronto Blue Jays Season Thread

[calculoso]

Apparently the strike zone is smaller this year. There used to be a 2-inch buffer zone around the rule book strike zone that has shrunk to 0.75-inch.

More details and reaction in the story - it was free for me (no longer a subscriber), not sure if it is also free for everyone else too


MLB made a change that players say shrank the strike zone — and caught them by surprise
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/632...r-zone-change/

Last winter, Major League Baseball negotiated a seemingly simple change in how home-plate umpires are graded and evaluated. But now, a month into the season, its impact on balls and strikes has players asking questions about what they believe is a tightened strike zone — and searching for ways to adjust to a new wrinkle they say caught them by surprise.

That change, which was part of a new labor agreement with the Major League Umpires Association, significantly decreased the margin of error for umpires in their evaluations — and has resulted in fewer called strikes off the edges of the plate through the same point as last season.

…

For the past two decades, umpires were working with a “buffer zone” that gave them 2 inches of leeway — on all sides of the plate, inside and outside the strike zone — when they were graded on how accurately they called balls and strikes.

Now, however, that buffer zone has shrunk, from 2 inches on all sides to just three-quarters of an inch on all sides, inside and outside the strike zone, according to league sources briefed on the change but not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. An MLB official confirmed that the buffer zone had decreased in size.
…

An MLB official said, “The rulebook strike zone has not changed and we have not instructed umpires to call a different strike zone. In response to consistent player and club desire to have umpires evaluated more closely to the rulebook strike zone, we agreed with the MLB Umpires Association in their new CBA to reduce the size of the ‘buffer’ around the border of the strike zone, which essentially protects an umpire from being graded ‘incorrect’ on extremely close misses.

More details and reaction in the story - it was free for me (no longer a subscriber), not sure if it is also free for everyone else too

[Andrew]

It's a long season. Despite recent cold spell still in
They will go on a hot streak. I said before I think this team will make the playoffs. I am not sure division I'd possible. Scherzer needs to come back

[zukes]

I was at the game Wednesday, and man, it was like a funeral in there until they finally started scoring. Still love getting to games, even if it means getting home after 1:00am. Makes for a tired work day the next day, so better when they win!

[KelVarnsen]

Bucknor is still terrible

[Hockey]

Not sure about this umps strike zone

[KelVarnsen]

Kirk is swinging a hot bat right now

[Hockey]

Ball 4 called a strike on Springer. Thankfully catcher's interference next pitch to allow Springer first and then Kirk hits a 2 run double.

[KelVarnsen]

Summer of George!

[Karl]

Lukes!!!! Big 2-run, 2 out RBI single.

[Karl]

Nice win.

[KelVarnsen]

Yay

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by KelVarnsen

Bucknor is still terrible

Yeah. Now that Angel Rodriguez is gone he's the new worst umpire.

[KelVarnsen]

Originally Posted by calculoso

Apparently the strike zone is smaller this year. There used to be a 2-inch buffer zone around the rule book strike zone that has shrunk to 0.75-inch.

More details and reaction in the story - it was free for me (no longer a subscriber), not sure if it is also free for everyone else too

MLB made a change that players say shrank the strike zone — and caught them by surprise
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/632...r-zone-change/

More details and reaction in the story - it was free for me (no longer a subscriber), not sure if it is also free for everyone else too

It’s poetic that this was posted before today’s game

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by KelVarnsen

It’s poetic that this was posted before today’s game

Oh? I mean, I think a wide variety of players were surprised by the strike "zone" today.

[KelVarnsen]

lol Scherzer
https://reddit.com/r/baseball/commen...ng_home_plate/

[Andrew]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

Yeah. Now that Angel Rodriguez is gone he's the new worst umpire.

Laz Diaz?

[Andrew]

I like they did something... turnbull and urena better than nothing. Hope scherzer didn't injuree his thumb with coinfilp lol in all serious we need him

[KelVarnsen]

Holy cow. Bo hits a HR

[KelVarnsen]

Ffs

[Inferno]

Garcia should have never been put in that situation. He had nothing left.