Major League Baseball’s attempt to speed up the pace of play shaved, on average, six minutes off the length of regular-season games. But don't expect the time of games to drop well into the playoffs.
MLB has elected not to warn players for any pace-of-play violations for the postseason due to the importance of the games.
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Even as commercial breaks in the postseason have increased, certain pitchers in the wild-card games still weren't ready to pitch within the recommended time frame.
For example, Pirates reliever Antonio Bastardo's discussion with catcher Francisco Cervelli in Wednesday's NL wild-card game lengthened the break between innings to nearly four minutes. But since it is the playoffs, MLB will look the other way.
“That is a critical time in a do-or-die playoff game that is very different than a routine regular-season game," said Chris Marinak, an MLB senior vice president via the New York Times. "If it takes a few extra seconds to make sure a player is ready in a critical situation, I think our fans can live with that.”