MLB Explains New Rules For 2023 Season With Ad Campaign

Major League Baseball has new rules for the 2023 season and a great marketing campaign to go with it.

The 2023 MLB season is upon us. Opening Day is Thursday, March 30, and with it comes our first glimpse of real game at action at the top level with some new rules that will surely seem drastic to many people. The big ones are the pitch clock, larger bases and limits on defensive shifting (full explainer here). 

For its part, the MLB marketing department is diving in with a new marketing campaign. The overarching them is "Baseball is Something Else." 

As for the new rules, here we go. 

Pitch clock

Yankees starter Nestor Cortes wants to make sure his catcher Jose Trevino -- and the rest of us -- are ready to hurry up. 

Larger bases

Mets DH Daniel Vogelbach, who has zero career stolen bases, now wants to run more, much to the dismay of manager Buck Showalter. 

Shift limits

White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson cannot go to the other side of second base to help Padres starter Blake Snell get his hat (no, they aren't teammates so we have to suspend a bit more reality for this one). 

Reds first baseman Joey Votto gets a hit through the right side.

The Big Finish

And of course, it's Bryan Cranston (you might know him as Walter White or a litany of others on screen) bringing it home: 

It's a good sell job. Now it's time for the real games to show fans that the new rules will make the game more exciting.