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Colorado Rockies: Bud Black’s thoughts on the 2020 rule changes

By Noah Yingling

Jun 2, 2017; San Diego, CA, USA; Colorado Rockies manager Bud Black (10) smiles before the game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 2, 2017; San Diego, CA, USA; Colorado Rockies manager Bud Black (10) smiles before the game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports /
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Bud Black of the Colorado Rockies
LOS ANGELES, CA – SEPTEMBER 20: Manger Bud Black of the Colorado Rockies of the Colorado Rockies before playing the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on September 20, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers won 12-5. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) /

On Wednesday, Colorado Rockies manager Bud Black spoke with the media and he was asked about his opinion on the 2020 rule changes.

Colorado Rockies manager Bud Black spoke with the media extensively on Wednesday and there was a lot to cover as it was his first time speaking with the media as a whole since the regular season ended in late September.

One of the things that he was asked about was his opinions on the five main changes to baseball in 2020:

  • A runner on base to start extra innings
  • The universal designated hitter
  • Expanded playoffs, both in the number of teams and games in the Wild Card series
  • Seven inning doubleheaders
  • The three batter minimum for relief pitchers (unless the inning was completed before facing the three batters)

Black, a self-called baseball “traditionalist,” told the media, including Rox Pile, that he was skeptical of most of the changes heading into the season but for most of them, he wouldn’t mind if they were kept. Let’s look at his opinions on all five.

Extra inning baserunner starting on second to start the 10th inning

This is one of the changes that Black said that he was skeptical of entering the season but he grew to like it a lot.

"“[For t]he extra-inning [baserunner] rule, I liked it,” said Black. “Going in [to the season]–again, [I’m] more of a traditionalist, thinking ‘let’s play this out [with] real baseball’ but, you know, I grew to like it. I grew to like how that instant intensity grew when that guy went out to second base in the 10th inning. [It’s] not quite ‘sudden-death’ but [it’s] a pretty good start.”"

He would consider a possible change to the rule, though: not starting in the 10th inning but perhaps later.

"“The only thing that I would think about [changing] there would be possibly, maybe, play 10 or 11 innings of baseball as we know it and then maybe shift gears to putting the runner on second [base] in the 11th, 12th, [or] 13th inning or something like that that we can talk about in some form of a committee,” said Black."

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