Cubs BCB After Dark: Should fielders need to stay in their spots?

Major League Baseball is quietly testing new defensive positioning restrictions in the Arizona Fall League to help boost offense. Writer Josh Timmers discusses reports that green hashmarks have been placed on fields at Salt River Field, requiring fielders to stand in designated spots before pitches are thrown.

Timmers strongly opposes the concept, calling it a gimmicky and artificial attempt to generate offense while penalizing analytically driven teams. He also questions whether forcing outfielders into shallow alignments properly rewards elite defensive play, citing Chicago Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong.