Is it time to take a harder look at defensive shifts?

Are defensive shifts hurting the game of baseball?

I would expect many fans to answer yes. Many players may well answer yes, too. The defensive shifts are taking away hits, and some feel they are taking away action in the game. The game needs more balls in play, not fewer.

I have never been against shifts for one basic reason - I don't think we should tell the defense where to play. Years ago, advance scouts helped teams set their defense by scouting opponents and noting where they often hit the ball. Now teams have specific printouts and charts to provide precise data. They track every ball put in play and it stands to reason that they position the defense accordingly. The infield shifts for many batters, but not the outfield.

It is up to the hitters to adjust to the shifts and many just cannot. Not with any consistency, so as to get the defense to shift them less. So the shifts continue. Wee Willie Keeler once said, "Hit 'em where they ain't." Now defenders play 'em where they do hit the ball.

The batting average in Major League Baseball last year for all teams and games was .245. That was the lowest since the .244 mark from 1972. And that was the year before the start of the use of the designated hitter in 1973.

Teams that shifted the most in 2020 by percentage of at-bats:
55.8 - Los Angeles Dodgers
50.5 - Detroit Tigers
46.2 - Pittsburgh Pirates
44.4 - Milwaukee Brewers
44.1 - Houston Astros

The MLB average was to see a defensive shift in 34.1 percent of all plate appearances. The Orioles defense ranked just ahead of that, 16th in MLB, with a shift 34.2 percent of the time.

The average was a shift against a right-hander batter 21.7 percent of the time. The O's shifted 10th-most versus righty hitters at 27.0 percent. The average was a shift against a left-handed batter 50.8 percent of the time. The O's shifted the 20th-most against left-handers at 45.5 percent.

Some advocate eliminating all shifts. Make a rule that there must be two infield defenders on either side of second base. Some take that further and endorse a rule that, not only do two infielders need to be on each side of second base, but they also must remain on the infield dirt as well. No groundball outs hit into short right field.

As we see more and more strikeouts in the game, and hitters in the so-called launch angle era trying to keep the ball off the ground and drive it with authority, we are seeing fewer balls in play. The shifts make it such that infield defenses are simply often too efficient. They are right where they need to be. That, in effect, cuts down on the great plays infielders sometimes need to make, as the better placement of fielders can mean we don't get to see their range and athleticism as much as we did before.

This is almost enough to convince me that the sport should either work to eliminate or reduce shifts. Almost.