MLB’s proposed ‘Golden At-Bat’ idea is both neat and stupid as hell

A weird, proposed rule is drawing closer to a reality.

It’s a tight game in the 7th between the Dodgers and Padres. Tied 3-3 it could be anyone’s game. Los Angeles has the bases loaded, one out left, with Max Muncy and his .232 batting average set to take the plate. The Dodgers call to the umpire that they’re using their “Golden At-Bat.” Now Shohei Ohtani is pulled out of order and is immediately at the plate, giving his team its best chance to win.

This is one of the most preposterous concepts imaginable, and yet it could soon be a reality. MLB owners are discussing the idea of several rule changes to spice up the game, including the idea of a “Golden At-Bat,” where teams could elect to send their best hitter to the plate for one at-bat, independent of lineup or pinch hitting rules. Jayson Stark of The Athletic notes that nothing is set in stone right now, and that the devil is in the details — meaning we have no idea how a “Golden At-Bat” rule would be worded. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred is at least interested in the idea.

“There are a variety of (rule change ideas) that are being talked about out there,” Manfred said. “One of them — there was a little buzz around it at an owners’ meeting — was the idea of a Golden At-Bat.”

It’s an obviously bizarre change without a lot of explanation as to why there’s a need for the change. Obviously getting more at-bats for star players comes with a level of appeal, but there’s nothing about the Golden At-Bat which would improve the quality of the game itself. Stark has one idea of how the rule could work, and it’s a pretty wild one.

“Or there’s the variation I’d vote for — where only a team that is trailing (or tied) in the ninth or later gets to use a Golden AB. I’m a fan of less is more, and two Golden ABs every game (one per team) might be overkill.”

Other potential variants involve letting teams use a Golden At-Bat whenever they want, once per game, perhaps they could only use it in the 7th inning or later. Either way it would represent a monumental change to the nature of baseball.

It’s also fair to consider whether this would lead to significant competitive imbalances. Being able to utilize more at-bats for star hitters would naturally give an edge to teams with an Aaron Judge or Shohei Ohtani on the roster, over those who have a less top-heavy, but evenly-rounded lineup.

Despite this, there is one place a golden at bat could make sense: Extra innings. Does anyone really enjoy extra inning games? What if we expedited the process by allowing teams one Golden At-bat for every inning, starting in the 11th. Each team is forced to play one inning with their current lineup, like an overtime period in hockey — then get to keep putting in their best player over and over again to close out the game would serve as a penalty shootout of sorts.

This would limit the competitive impact of the Golden At-bat, while also adding a wrinkle to end games quicker. Outside of that it’s tough to see how this rule makes a lot of sense.