Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players’ Association (MLBPA) agreed to institute seven-inning doubleheaders beginning on Aug. 1, as first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
The rule will only be in place for this season.
Several doubleheaders are poised to take place in the coming weeks after the Miami Marlins’ coronavirus outbreak in Philadelphia impacted the league’s 60-game 2020 schedule.
The Marlins’ season has been paused and they won’t be able to play until at least Monday while the Phillies — who played the Marlins last weekend — saw their upcoming series against the Toronto Blue Jays postponed.
With the 60-game, coronavirus-shortened schedule having limited days off — the hope is to play the entire slate in 66 days — the Marlins, Phillies, and the teams they were supposed to play like the Blue Jays, Yankees, and Orioles, will have to make those games up in an efficient manner.
Seven-inning games in the doubleheaders will allow teams to keep their players fresher, specifically their bullpen, which is usually overworked on such occasions.
