Olympic Extra Innings Rule: WTF?

by Boxkutter on Aug 15, 2008 1:54 PM EDT Comment 15 comments

So I was just reading how Team USA lost another game, this time to Cuba in extra innings. But one line in the article really caught my attention:

"International baseball's new extra-innings rule was used for the first time Friday. Beginning in the 11th inning, runners go to first and second and teams can start at any point in their batting order."

So now. starting in the 11th innings every team starts with runners on 1st and 2nd and with any batter they want??? What the Hell is this? Why wasn't a bigger stink made of this? I know tons of people were pissed when soccer and hockey developed shoot-outs to eliminate ties in their sports, and I think this is so much worse. This is like if you made the goalie start from behind the net in a shootout situation. This rule really hinders the defense in Olympic action now. Awful, awful rule I believe.

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Yeah I was a little disapointed to hear Baseball wasn’t going to be a sanctioned sport until I’ve read about the differences in the rules and the fact that USA can’t use their best players (in fact most countries can’t). I sort of feel it isn’t much of a big deal if it’s no longer an event anymore.

by jfish26101 on Aug 15, 2008 3:23 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

WBC

One hopes the WBC takes over as the preeminent international competition. If so, I won’t care so much.

Have to agree, this is a stupid stupid rule and only the IOC, dominated by Europeans who don’t play the game, could have made this up (my apologies if the IOC didn’t make up this rule. They’re still a bunch of tools.)

by Lunkwill Fook on Aug 15, 2008 3:34 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

the IOC technically didn't make up the rule

but they are basically responsible for it. I don’t think the IOC can make up the rules for any sport that takes place in the Olympics. That is left up to the various governing federations. But the IOC can tell a federation that they need to do something for the Olympics and it will be done. In this case the IOC said, make baseball end.. so the IBAF did so.

by nms on Aug 15, 2008 5:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

horrible rule!

what a joke show. i can’t think of a better way to end a terrific baseball game. bravo!

I heard Tim Lincecum will win 1 Cy Young & 11 Tim Lincecums. Question is, how many Cole Hamels will he win?

by the pinstripes on Aug 15, 2008 3:41 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

huge advantage to the home team

Remember: baseball guys... baseball...

by Metty5 on Aug 15, 2008 4:15 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Why?

www.loftylantern.com

by OldProspects on Aug 17, 2008 12:03 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

More reason to not watch the Olympics.

by thejd44 on Aug 15, 2008 4:45 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Tournament play

It’s a logical rule for round-robin play. Baseball purists will gripe, but it’s the Olympics. They don’t have the time, nor the experience to be playing 20-something innings. That’s the difference between professional sports and “amateur” sports. Sometimes in the spirit of fairness, a sport has got to be scaled down for efficiency’s sake.

by StickRat on Aug 15, 2008 5:36 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I see your point, but I still don’t think games would go on that long, on a regular basis anyway. Just because their not all pro players doesn’t mean they won’t score without so much help. I’m sure someone will end up scoring more than the other team at some point, usually after a couple extra innings.

Less arm, more talk. Raisingcain is a GAMER.
Adopted Giant: Henry Sosa

by raisingcain on Aug 15, 2008 5:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

It's not to let teams score, per se

It’s to increase the diversity of possible outcomes in an inning, so that the game is more likely to end that inning. Look up one of Tango’s run outcome charts (I think there’s one in The Book; there may be one on his website) and you’ll see that the probability of ending with a tie after 11 under this rule is sizably lower than the probability of ending with a tie under normal rules. The goal is to shorten the games so that pitchers don’t blow out their arms in an intense competition. Instead of a 50% chance of the game ending in the 11th inning, there might now be a 75% chance.

Your 2008 Athletics: It's Nothing Personal.

by PaulThomas on Aug 15, 2008 9:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

sure

it might also be easier to end basketball overtimes quicker by playing H-O-R-S-E instead.

That doesn’t mean you do that, because doing that isn’t how basketball is played… just like this isn’t how baseball is played.

Also, I’d wager that almost none of the thinking behind this was intended to save pitchers arms.. its just the IOC pressuring the IBAF to speed their shit up so baseball can get out of the Olympics ASAP

by nms on Aug 16, 2008 12:58 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

nonsense

“amateur” (these guys are PRO ATHLETES, I don’t know why you’re calling Olympic baseball amatuersports play by the real rules all the time.
Look at college regionals or conference tournaments. The ACC opens its conf tourney with 3 games worth of pool play followed by a championship game and every game of that is played as baseball.. not baseball for 10 innings then retardation from there on out.
College regionals can have a team playing 4 games in 3 days or 5 games in 4 days and yet everyone of those are played to completion despite featuring 100% amateur players (many of whom not even on scholarship) and oftentimes extraordinarily weak pitching depth.

Running out of arms is Part. Of. The. Game.

by nms on Aug 16, 2008 12:56 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

oops

i typo’d the hell outta the first line.
Lets retype that as:
…“"amateur" sports (these guys are PRO ATHLETES, I don’t know why you’re calling Olympic baseball amateur) play by the real rules all the time.”

by nms on Aug 16, 2008 1:00 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

You know what nms?? I respect your insights, because quite frankly you know what you’re talking about. However, you always drop condescending bombs on people like “nonsense”, then get all bent out of shape when people get an attitude with you.

And it isn’t “nonsense”. You are looking at baseball from a stricly professional view. In the ACC, or any professional league, the challenge of utilizing a pitching staff in regards to all-out stamina is a season-long thing, with managers who know their pitchers inside and out. Irregardless of the players’ respective statuses, the teams are temporary “amateur” squads. So managers don’t have the challenge of keeping pitchers healthy for a season, or many seasons for that manner. It’s a 13 game schedule. What’s next? Should Olympic Boxing scrap the four-round format for a more professional 12-round one? Should Olympic Soccer ditch the penalty kick system? Should Olympic Basketball move the three-point line back? Should Olympic Baseball fans be getting tanked on beer and yelling at umpires?

It’s the Olympics, for crying out loud. And the rules are the same for both teams on the field at a given time.

by StickRat on Aug 16, 2008 2:08 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

do I?

I really don’t think I do. I certainly TRY to not turn crap into petty insults or “condescending bombs”. When I say things like “nonsense,” I don’t mean it in a condescending manner at least. I mean it in more of a “poppycock!” way. I think I’ll say poppycock from now on, so as to make it more clear that I’m not trying to be severe. I will admit that I don’t have much patience for ideas that I find off-base but I try to make it clear that it is only the idea I have a problem with, and not the poster. I know I’ve thought/said more than my share of silly crap. If I have been severe, my apologies. It certainly wasn’t meant that way.

As for the baseball side of things..
I’m really not looking at things from a pro view. Promise. I’ll admit I’m a hard-line traditionalist, and my objection to this comes from a “sanctity of the game” standpoint. I just don’t think that any baseball game should end like that.
Making boxing a four, instead of 12, round deal is a matter of changing how long an event goes on.. not changing the fundamental rules of the game. I’m sure it does affect the punches in the rings (since it is easier to deal with 4 rounds of beating vs. 12) but you still aren’t changing how the game fundamentally works.
Same with changing the 3-pt line in basketball since pros, internationals and colleges all use different lines, it is clear there isn’t a consensus to how long a 3 (a recent idea by itself) should be.
I don’t really know squat about Soccer penalty kicks, but I have heard several knowledgeable soccer die hards talk about how much they hate penalty kicks.. so I don’t think I’m alone there. Of course soccer, like hockey, is a sport where ties are OK. Obviously in baseball ties should never happen.

As for the fans getting tanked and yelling on umps.. why not ? : )
Well, as long as why don’t host host the Olympics in Chicago and let the White Sox fans go pummel some coach : )

by nms on Aug 16, 2008 2:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs