Phillies prepare for 2023 MLB changes

PHILADELPHIA -- Major League Baseball is making changes ahead of the 2023 season.

It has been interesting to hear the Phillies talk about them, because everybody will be affected.

Here are thoughts on three of them:

1. Pick up the pace, dude
The pitch clock will be a focus for the Phillies this spring.

There will be a 15 seconds allowed between pitches with the bases empty, and 20 seconds with runners on base. (Minor League games were reduced by about 26 minutes last season with the pitch clock in use.)

Phillies manager Rob Thomson and pitching coach Caleb Cotham are already preparing.

“Just talking to Caleb, one of the things we’ll talk about or do is during bullpen sessions, have clocks on guys,” Thomson said this month. “They have these buzzer clocks in Clearwater. And during BP sessions, do the same thing.

“Obviously, they’re not going to be penalized, but they get that inner clock, if you will, of how much time they have to get the ball back, reset their mind, reset their focus. OK, here's my sign, now I go in.”

This list suggests only two returning Phillies pitchers will need to pick up the pace with the bases empty: José Alvarado and Andrew Bellatti. Alvarado’s timer equivalent puts him at 16.1 seconds between pitches, while Bellatti’s is 18.6, which is the sixth-slowest mark out of 399 pitchers. Aaron Nola just beat the clock at 14.2 seconds with the bases empty.

It is no surprise, then, that Alvarado (20.3), Nola (20.6) and Bellatti (21.3) will need to pick up the pace with runners on base.

Taijuan Walker should have no issues. He works fast, with a timer equivalent of 9.1 seconds between pitches with the bases empty and 14.7 seconds with runners on base. Matt Strahm is borderline with the bases empty, at 14.6 seconds, although he works relatively faster with runners on base, at 17.6 seconds.

2. The balanced schedule
MLB will have a more balanced schedule next season, meaning every team will play every other team at least once. It means fewer games for the Phillies against the Braves, Marlins, Mets and Nationals, but more opportunities to see players like Mike Trout, who had not played the Phillies since 2017 before he played them this past summer at Citizens Bank Park.

It’s one of the best new wrinkles MLB has implemented in a long time.

“It’s the only way to do it, have a balanced schedule,” Thomson said. “Everybody’s playing fairly, you know. Like a lot of times with Interleague, one division would play a really weak division on the other side. And we’re in the National League East, and we’re beating each other up for 80 games and one team doesn’t get in because somebody in the National League Central, for example, is playing the weakest of the American League divisions. So I think it’s fair, and I think it’s the right way to do it.”

3. The shift
The shift as we know it is gone, which will be a blessing for players like Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Rhys Hoskins. The Phillies’ defense shifted only 27.3% of the time last season, which ranked 22nd in the Majors. But positioning will remain incredibly important.

“People think that, ‘OK, now you can't shift,’” Thomson said. “I think there’s going to be more emphasis on where you put those two guys on each side, and that’s going to be critical. You really have to do a good job of looking at spray charts and things like that to make sure that rover, if you will, it's going to be either the shortstop or second baseman, is placed in the right spot on that side of the diamond.”

The Phillies have two fast middle infielders in Trea Turner and Bryson Stott. It could help.