Somebody brought this up both here & on MLBN, here is DD's take on outlawing shifts in baseball:
Dombrowski was adamant on one topic, though. He would be opposed to outlawing shifts in Major League Baseball, something new commissioner Rob Manfred has suggested.
"I don't like the idea of that," he said. "There are people in our front office that think it's a good idea. I think it's a mistake. You should never penalize intellect. If you are smart enough to play players in certain positions, you shouldn't be penalized."
Dombrowski understands the reasoning behind the desire to outlaw shifts — to facilitate more offense. He believes there is a more baseball-intrinsic, non-legislative way to achieve that.
"One of the biggest problems we have is hitters have gotten away from using the whole field," he said. "Pitching is better than ever. You see guys coming out of the bullpen and their average velocity is 93 mph-plus. ... The velocity has improved and hitting is tougher.
"But using the whole field will help the offense. Instead of saying you can't play that person there, you need to be in a position as a hitter where you can take advantage of driving the ball the other way."
Dombrowski's argument is bolstered by the presence all-fields hitters in his own lineup — Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez and J.D. Martinez among them.
"Cabrera and (Victor) Martinez are two of the best hitters in baseball," he said. "And not only are they two of the best, but how they go about their at-bats. Using the whole field. That's really important, especially in our ballpark.
"But I think in today's game, one of the reasons offense is down is hitters have become pull-oriented. ... If you are using the whole field you usually have fewer holes (in your swing), you drive more pitches. You don't just have one zone you can handle."
Among the various suggestions Major League Baseball has discussed to speed up the pace of games, Dombrowski expects at least one to be implemented this season — teams will have 2:25 between innings. Stadiums will be fitted with a clock.
"One thing you will see, which will happen right away, is between innings when it says 2:25 between the last out and the next inning starts, that first pitch will come at 2:25," he said. "It won't be at 2:25 the hitter is announced and he strolls in and the pitcher gets on the mound. The pitcher is going to be ready to deliver the ball at 2:25.
"So if you are taking a bathroom break between innings, make sure you know it will be coming back a little quicker."
chris.mccosky@detroitnews.com
