Texas Rangers Opening Day: Fans celebrate the start of a new season
FORT WORTH (CBSNewsTexas.com) — Texas Rangers fans are celebrating Opening Day on Thursday as the team prepares to take on the Philadelphia Phillies in a three-game home stand.
Hours before the game, fans celebrated with what has become a time-honored tradition for some: tailgating.
"We're big Ranger fans, been Ranger fans all our lives and we love tailgating! We've been doing it 20-plus years now. It brings us together at least once a year and we just have a good time and cheer on our Texas Rangers," said Rangers fan Primo Sauceda.
This Opening Day comes along with a flurry of rules changes meant to speed up the game, the team's Executive Vice President of Public Affairs John Blake explained.
The MLB is now on a new pitch clock, ticking down to a shorter game. Pitchers will have a limited 15 seconds to throw the next pitch, and 20 seconds if there is a runner on base. Batters must be ready to hit with eight seconds left on the clock, and if they're not ready, it's a strike.
Violating these rules earns a ball for the pitcher. The clock is set to 20 seconds when a runner is on base, and the pitcher can only check on the runner twice during a plate appearance. Batters can only call time once, and there's a firm limit of 30 seconds between hitters, while the time between innings is two minutes and 15 seconds.
The bases are larger too, going from 15 inches to 18 inches in length.
The Texas Rangers are advising fans to purchase parking tickets in advance to cut down on the amount of traffic.
The game starts at 3:05pm at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
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