In recent years, Major League Baseball has implemented bigger bases, the pitch clock and a runner in scoring position to start extra innings, and it appears MLB commissioner Rob Manfred isn't done tinkering with the national pastime just yet.
"There are a variety of [rule change ideas] that are being talked about out there. One of them — there was a little buzz around it at an owners' meeting — was the idea of a 'Golden At-Bat.'" said Manfred during an appearance on a recent podcast.
As reported by Ryan Phillips of Sports Illustrated, the basic concept behind the "Golden At-Bat" is that a team could choose one at-bat in every game to use its best hitter regardless of where they are in the lineup. "So if, say the New York Yankees had the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the ninth, they could bring Aaron Judge to the plate even if it wasn't his turn in the order," Phillips wrote. "It would be a one-time replacement, not a substitution like a pinch hitter."
According to Phillips, citing reporting by Jayson Stark of The Athletic, there is much to consider with such a rule change. For example, if a hitter reaches base in the lineup spot before the one he occupied to start the game, does he return to the batter's box for back-to-back plate appearances? Would it make sense for the rule to apply only to teams that are trailing?
The rule is "in the conversation-only stage right now," Manfred clarified on the podcast, as reported by SI.
"One thing is for sure: If the 'Golden At-Bat' rule is eventually implemented, scorecards are going to be an absolute mess," Phillips wrote.
