The average time of a nine-inning game was 3 hours 5 minutes last season, about 14 minutes longer than the average game in 2010. “The signs are getting so much more advanced to protect against that, so that’s why you’re seeing more mound visits,” Verlander said. “You already have video before the pitcher comes into a game,” Verlander said. But Dave Martinez, the manager of the Washington Nationals, was not sure six visits would be enough. The rules also allow extra mound visits if the umpire determines that the pitcher has misunderstood the catcher’s signs.

Source: New York Times February 19, 2018 23:37 UTC