Rule changes to be tested in the minors this year:
https://www.mlb.com/news/baseball-rule-changes-tested-in-minor-leagues-in-2021?partnerId=zh-20210312-156906-MLB&qid=1026&bt_ee=%2FWqZQydQtxx%2BMfMHVCjsE8CSDAvDUwtJukuVWlQvs5JD4Y2HRjj9fpiMlZK7s%2Bx%2B&bt_ts=1615552943025this one will be interesting:
DEFENSIVE POSITIONING RESTRICTIONS (ALL DOUBLE-A)"Infielder" will never be a misnomer in Double-A this year. The first baseman, second baseman, shortstop and third baseman will be required to have both feet completely in front of the outer infield dirt boundary when the pitch is delivered.
Note that this is different than the oft-discussed idea of forcing teams to have two infielders on each side of the second-base bag -- a rule that was part of past Atlantic League experimentation. So infielders can still shift to the other side of the diamond, but they must position themselves within the infield.
This is more easily enforced by umpires than a restriction on lateral movement in which players could conceivably rush from one side of the second-base bag to the other as the pitch crosses the plate. It is possible, though, that MLB may require two infielders on each side of second base in the second half of the Double-A season, depending on how the initial experiment goes in the first half.
The goal here is, simply, a higher batting average on balls in play. Under this new arrangement, for example, the scorching ground ball we so often see gobbled up by a second baseman positioned in shallow right is more likely to get through.