MLB's 'Golden At-Bat' rule: What we know about the potential change

Rob Manfred has floated another idea that would drastically change the foundation of how Major League Baseball is played.

The MLB commissioner recently shared on Puck’s “The Varsity” podcast that the idea of implementing the “Golden At-Bat” has gained steam among owners.

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

Manfred’s comment was actually made back in October, but resurfaced in recent days due to a story from The Athletic. In the story, MLB officials reportedly declined to elaborate further on what the rule would entail.

However, Manfred hinted at what the “Golden At-Bat” would look like.

“[It’s] putting your best player out there out of order at a particular point in the game,” Manfred said. “That rule and things like that are in the conversation-only stage right now.”

[Related: MLB Roundtable on the Golden At-Bat rule]

While Manfred didn’t mention it on “The Varsity” podcast, the Savannah Bananas have a similar rule in their games. The Savannah Bananas, who are an exhibition barnstorming team that’s been viewed as baseball’s version of the Harlem Globetrotters, have the “Golden Batter” rule. The rule, which was implemented ahead of the Bananas’ 2024 world tour, allowed teams to pinch-hit any hitter at any time of the game. Each team can only use the “Golden Batter” once.

In a video explaining the rule, the Savannah Bananas pointed to the epic final at-bat in the 2023 World Baseball Classic championship game when Shohei Ohtani struck Mike Trout to help Japan beat the United States.

“With the ‘Golden Batter’ rule, these insane matchups are guaranteed in each and every Banana Ball game,” a presenter for the Savannah Bananas said in a video.

USA vs. Japan Highlights

If it were brought to MLB, the “Golden At-Bat” rule would most likely come into play in the ninth inning or in high-leverage spots in the later innings of close games. There are countless times fans would’ve wished for their team to have their top hitter at the plate rather than someone in the midst of a cold streak or a bottom-of-the-line-up hitter.

For instance, the 7-8-9 hitters in the New York Yankees’ lineup went up against Walker Buehler in the ninth inning of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ series-clinching win in Game 5 as Aaron Judge and Juan Soto watched from the dugout.

Of course, such a rule could have major implications toward MLB’s history books as well. Star players would, presumably, gain an extra at-bat each game, which would likely allow them to inflate their stats relative to previous all-time greats.

As Manfred has introduced rules such as the universal designated hitter, the ghost runner, pitch clock and shift bans that have altered the game, he noted the obstacles of getting traditionalists to accept the changes. However, Manfred said the biggest issue has been getting the players’ union fully on board.

“The player side of it is really difficult for the union,” Manfred told “The Varsity” about making those sorts of rule changes. “Obviously, you want consensus, and we need agreement, or would like agreement, with the union. The reason it’s so hard for them is that if you think about it, almost every change, the pitchers line up one way, and the hitters line up another, and they represent them both.

“It’s very hard for the union to figure out where it ought to be on these role changes, and it makes the process more difficult.”

It appears Manfred’s notion about a pitcher/hitter split might be true. In the story for The Athletic, two of the three hitters (Christian Yelich and Carlos Correa) were open to the idea of the “Golden At-Bat” making its way into regular-season games. Meanwhile, the lone pitcher interviewed for the story (Matt Strahm) wasn’t a fan of it being enacted.

So, it appears the implementation of the “Golden At-Bat” rule is still a debate, at least for now. But it could be something that baseball fans might have to get accustomed to seeing sooner rather than later.

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