by Ryan Duvall ’21

The MLB season kicked off less than a week ago, which means that baseball is back. There are many people who don’t really care for the game and think it’s boring due to it’s slow pace. However, there are many reasons to watch baseball this year (and cheer for the hometown Washington Nationals). So without further ado here are my four reasons to watch the MLB this year:

1. The MLB is speeding up the game: Commissioner Rob Manfred has been working hard to increase the pace of games. In February of 2018 he implemented new rules to limit the number of mound visits in games, along with shortening time of instant replay and between-inning breaks. This year, Manfred still is not satisfied with the pace of games and wants to add a pitch clock of 20 seconds, although players have not been supportive of the idea.
2. More stars than ever in today’s game: One thing the MLB certainly has done a good job of is increasing the number of stars in the league. Stars like Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, and Bryce Harper are very popular and make baseball very fun to watch. Even stars like Padres third baseman Manny Machado, who is known to be a dramatic player, makes the MLB fun with his antics and great plays in the field.
3. The Longball: 2017 and 2018 provided fans with some of the most home runs ever. And it looks like the longball won’t be going away, as a record 48 home runs were hit on opening day 2019. If you’re into offense, the modern day MLB will be a treat for you.
4. The Nats Are Contender … Yet Again: Our local team, the Washington Nationals, are looking to compete for a World Series despite the loss of Harper to the Phillies. However, the Nats have been contenders for multiple years and in that span have not won a playoff series. Luckily,they have bulked up the roster. Over the offseason they added all-star talents in pitcher Patrick Corbin, and second baseman Brian Dozier, along with finally bringing up 4th ranked MLB prospect Victor Robles. Robles and second year outfielder Juan Soto will make quite the tandem. Team leaders Max Scherzer and Ryan Zimmerman are not getting any younger and want to win now.