Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora says MLB’s new bases ‘look like a PIZZA box’… after new rules implemented this season will see them increase in size by three square inches for safety
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Major League Baseball games will look at least a little different this season with the size of first, second, and third base set to increase in size.
Not everyone is a fan, with Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora sounding exasperated at the visual aspects of the change.
‘The bases, they’re the bases,’ Cora said to reporters Tuesday. ‘Wait ’til you see them — they look like a pizza box, to be honest with you.’
As part of multiple changes as a way to make the game quicker and safer, Major League Baseball announced they would be increasing the size of the bases from 15 square inches to 18 square inches.
MLB says the intention behind this increase is to make the game safer – especially at first base where collisions have become common.
Side-by-side the new bases that MLB is implementing look drastically larger than the old ones
Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora is in awe over the size of the new bases MLB will roll out
Collisions have become a major issue in baseball – especially at first base, where charging runners can sometimes spike fielders focused on tracking a throw.
With these new measures in place, first basemen have an extra three inches of space to stay out of the way from an oncoming baserunner.
This will also aide those trying to steal bases, with the larger bags creating a shorter distance between them and potentially preventing oversliding.
While this is a concern for some coaches, these bases were used in the minors last year and Cora says the effects won’t be so drastic.
‘Talking to the minor league coaches and everybody that used the rules last year — it’s not that all of the sudden we’re gonna steal 100 bags with a guy,’ Cora said.
‘The value of the out is still in play, and you get 27. So you gotta be smart, you gotta be efficient.’
Other rules that are being put in place this season include a pitch clock and banning the defensive shift.
On the field, the difference is even clearer – but safety is the main reason behind the changes
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