Major League Baseball’s polarizing extra-inning “ghost runner” rule isn’t going anywhere.
The Joint Competition Committee voted unanimously Monday to make the rule permanent for 2023 and beyond, according to multiple reports.
Per the rule, which only applies to regular-season games, a runner automatically will be placed on second base to begin every inning after the ninth inning, until a winner is determined.
The rule has been in place the past three seasons, starting with the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. It’s geared toward preserving the health of pitchers by limiting marathon games, and the effects have been noticeable, to say the least.
According to The Athletic, MLB had 37 games go 13 innings or longer, with eight over 15 innings, in 2019. That number shrunk to 11 games that lasted 13 innings or longer, and none over 15, in 2022.
Another permanent change to the rulebook Monday centered around position players pitching. A position player now can pitch for a leading team only if that team is up by 10 or more runs in the ninth inning. Conversely, trailing teams can use a position player to pitch anytime they’re down by eight or more runs. And position players are allowed to pitch anytime in extra innings.
This more or less is an extension of the rule in place last season, when position players could appear as pitchers only in extra innings or if his team was trailing or winning by six runs or more.
As MLB.com notes, the Joint Competition Committee is comprised of six MLB representatives, four players and one umpire. And all told, these new permanent rules pale in magnitude to the other rule changes MLB will be implementing beginning in 2023.
