STRICTER

MLB Adopts New 2B Sliding Rules

Slides must now be "bona fide" attempts to reach the bag.

Major League Baseball has adopted for the 2016 season a new set of rules regarding what a player can and cannot do while sliding into second base with the opportunity to break up a double play. Above all, the rule states, a player must make a "bona fide" attempt to reach the base while also interfering with the defending player's attempt to complete a double play. The guidelines define "bona fide" as being when the sliding player: 1) begins the slide before reaching the base; 2) is able to reach the base with a hand or foot; 3) is able and attempts to remain on the base after completion; and 4) slides within reach of the base without purposely altering his path to deliberately knock out a fielder. The new rules come after Los Angeles Dodgers star Chase Utley made a controversial slide in game two of the 2015 NLDS that broke the leg of New York Mets second baseman Ruben Tejada during a double-play attempt.