MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has time and again prioritized speeding up the pace of games and, by extension, shortening those same games. To that end comes a radical idea with regard to games that go into extra innings. Here's the scoop from Yahoo's Jeff Passan:
Major League Baseball plans on testing a rule change in the lowest levels of the minor leagues this season that automatically would place a runner on second base at the start of extra innings, a distinct break from the game's orthodoxy that nonetheless has wide-ranging support at the highest levels of the league, sources familiar with the plan told Yahoo Sports.
Specifically, MLB will try out this system -- i.e., putting a runner in scoring position to start every extra frame -- in rookie ball this season. It's similar to what's already in place for the World Baseball Classic since 2009.