The Cleveland Guardians are the latest victims of the Baltimore Orioles’ infamous left-field wall.
They moved the wall back four years ago.
They also got rid of some seats closer to the field to try to make it harder for opposing right-handed hitters to hit home runs.
However, that was a double-edged sword, as it was also hurting their own sluggers.
With that in mind, the team moved the wall back in by 20 feet in some areas and close to nine feet in others.
This led to some confusion and new ground rules, including a yellow line on the wall that marks whether the ball is in play or a homer.
That’s why Guardians OF coach J.T. Maguire had to share his thoughts on this issue:
“It’s still deep enough where an outfielder feels like they’re running forever. That whole area is tricky in itself because it kind of goes straight back, but it’s almost like a 45 degree angle. In those scenarios you just kind of have to play defense and just read where the ball’s going to kick,” Maguire said.
To add insult to injury, the wall has a section padded out and another section without pads, and that leads to all kinds of different bounces.
Needless to say, these changes in depth require major adjustments by left fielders.
Then again, at the end of the day, the rules will be the same for everybody, and that should be no excuse not to take care of business in Maryland.
The left-field wall wasn’t much of a factor in the series opener, and the Guardians didn’t have much trouble getting to 41-year-old Charlie Morton.
They won the first game 6-3 to take their record to 9-7.
Now, Gavin Williams will take the mound for Stephen Vogt’s team, with the Orioles going with Dean Kremer.
NEXT: Logan Allen Credits Guardians Catcher For 'Making It Easy' On Tuesday
