The Orioles will reconfigure Orioles Park at Camden Yards to reduce home runs to leftfield:
“For the start of the 2022 season, the distance from home plate to the left field wall will be pushed back as much as 30 feet, in varying increments at different points in the wall, and the height will raise approximately 5 feet,” the email said. “By pushing back the left field wall, we’ve created a playing field that is fair for both pitchers and hitters.”
ESPN.com
There were 277 home runs hit in Orioles home games in 2021, 176 on the road. If you want less of a three-true outcomes game, this is one way to move in that direction. I wonder if we’ll see similar moves from other clubs?
That’s a reason that I’ve come to like Comerica Park, although the fences are close to being ridiculously deep to either side of centerfield. The most exciting play in baseball is runner on first and a drive into the right-center field gap, especially if you’re in the stadium and can see the entire play develop in front of you. I thought the same when I played catcher in a fast-pitch softball league for most of my younger life.
The anticipation of a play at the plate, with a fair amount of time to try and judge whether the runner will make it, plus the need for multiple defensive players to execute cleanly – hard to beat that.