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FanPost Friday - Free Baseball!

More of a good thing?

Atlanta Braves v Boston Red Sox
While this particular walk-off happened in the 9th inning of a game, the feeling isn’t lost. It’s exceptional to win a game after nineteen frames.
Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

There’s a saying I’ve always had that’s helped me to maintain my sanity between bouts of arguments over whether to fire Farrell, DFA our crappy reliever of the day, and general anger directed at things we cannot control.

You want to know my super-awesome saying, don’t you?

Well, because you asked nicely:

“The only thing better than baseball is free baseball.”

This applies to extra innings games. I expect a nine inning game. Sometimes we get ten. Sometimes twelve. And if we’re particularly lucky, it’s nineteen innings, baby!

But I also realize not everyone shares my love of extra frames. Recently, we had a Cubs/Yankees game go eighteen innings. For some reason, this was huge news, even though the Sox have had longer games in recent memory. Then I saw an article on how it could be one of the last types of extra innings games of its kind. MLB has been experimenting with ways to change the rules of extras, to help get the game done in a quicker manner, and appeal to a wider demographic.

New York Yankees v Chicago Cubs
Koji Uehara, our old friend, pitched the twelfth inning for the Cubs on that fateful night.
Photo by David Banks/Getty Images

So my question to you is this:

How do you feel about extra innings in baseball? Should MLB do something about them? If you have a wacky suggestion for getting games done quicker, go for it!

The only rule with this FanPost is that you address extra innings. You can discuss the pace of play changes in addition to it, but it cannot be the sole focus of your piece.

I look forward to seeing what you all come up with, and hope for more than one wacky, outside-the-box suggestion.