Krukow rips MLB’s Golden At-Bat idea as ‘stupid,’ ‘absurd’

Krukow rips MLB’s Golden At-Bat idea as ‘stupid,’ ‘absurd’ originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

MLB’s idea for a Golden At-Bat in every game is simply that — an idea. But longtime Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow already isn’t a fan.

“We’re seriously not going to talk about the Golden At-Bat, are we?” Krukow said with a hint of disappointment in his voice Tuesday on KNBR’s “Murph & Markus” show.

“No, it’s not brilliant. I think it’s a stupid idea with two O’s. ‘Stoopid.’ I just don’t understand – five years from now, we’ll be playing slowpitch softball. I mean, this is where we’re heading.”

Baseball has transformed in recent years, from high-profile rule changes to strategy adjustments. But the Golden At-Bat, a potential change brought up by MLB commissioner Rob Manfred on “The Varsity” podcast in October, certainly would impact the game beyond what has been done so far.

Manfred described the Golden At-Bat idea to Puck’s John Ourand as “in the conversation-only stage right now,” but the rule change essentially would allow MLB teams to choose one at-bat in every game where they could send their best hitter to the plate, even if it wasn’t his turn in the order.

There are some in favor of the potential rule change, like former MLB outfielder Eric Byrnes, who discussed the topic with “Murph & Markus” on Wednesday and disagreed with Krukow’s assessment.

Krukow isn’t having it.

“And this was something that the commissioner brought up,” Krukow, incredulous, continued. “… [Manfred] throws this out there, and it’s like, come on, man. Baseball is such a beautiful game. Why are you messing with it?

“If you’re going to do something dramatic and you want to gather interest, why don’t you have two separate teams. Every team has two separate teams. They have an offensive team, where all that team does is hit, and you have a defensive team, where all that team does is play on the defensive side. That’s it.

“Why not do that? To me, that’s more interesting than having someone come up in a Golden At-Bat. It just seems absurd. To me, there’s no place for it — even the conversation. There’s no place for it.”

Krukow went on to say that he believes changes in all facets of the game have turned MLB into a “glorified home run derby,” making it clear he isn’t in favor of how baseball has shifted. But despite his objection, maybe there’s a chance Krukow will be offering commentary on a Giants Golden At-Bat sometime in the future.

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