With the timeless game suddenly featuring countdown clocks, the Nationals had to find a way to keep pace in a 3-2 win over the Cardinals in Jupiter, Fla.
But as the teams lined up on each side of home plate ahead of the game, a noticeable addition could be seen on the backstop: a pitch clock. Two more were below the scoreboards in center field. And after Nationals leadoff hitter CJ Abrams fouled off the first pitch he saw from Adam Wainwright, the Cardinals right-hander got a new ball — and the clocks lit up, then began to count down from 15.win — was complete. MacKenzie Gore pitched a scoreless first inning in his Nationals debut.
In the bigger picture, Saturday provided a glimpse of what’s to come with the pitch clock — 20 seconds with a runner on base, 15 with the bases empty. If the pitcher doesn’t start his delivery by the time the clock has expired, he is charged an automatic ball.In the second inning, Alex Colomé was penalized when time ran out on him. He then found himself down 1-0 in the count and rushed his next pitch and nearly allowed a home run before the ball died near the warning track.
Each batter will need to have a similar clock ticking in his mind. He has to be in the batter’s box with eight seconds left on the clock — or he’s charged with an automatic strike. Adams led off the second and fourth innings Saturday, so he sprinted to the dugout to take off his gear — he said he’s particularly slow at doing that — so he could be ready. Yadiel Hernandez wasn’t as swift; he was issued an automatic strike ahead of his first at-bat because he took too much time.
“The stuff to keep trending up,” he said. “We threw some good sliders today, and we hadn’t done that really in camp so far. Keep throwing a lot of strikes, and hopefully the stuff just keeps getting a little better, and we should be all right.”
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