NEW YORK -- Wade Miley hears the talk about lifting the bottom of the strike zone in an effort to spark offense and insists there has been too much tinkering already.I dont know why they just cant leave the game alone, the Seattle pitcher said. Cant we just go play and try to get three outs and go from there?Concerned about the drop in offense in recent years, Major League Baseball has studied whether to restore the lower edge of the strike zone from just beneath the kneecap to its pre-1996 level -- at the top of the kneecap. Any change for 2017 would require an agreement with the players association, which is skeptical. Membership is split.I think its kind of outrageous what theyre trying to do with the strike zone, Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Alex Wood said. Obviously, Im biased. Im a pitcher. But at the same time, its shrunk drastically, maybe even in the last five or six years.Baseball people talk about the strike zone the way most discuss the weather: constant complaints about hard-to-fathom change.Wood threw 11.9 percent of his pitches last year at the bottom of the strike zone, according to Fangraphs, which defined the lowest portion as between 1.5 and 1.75 feet off the ground. That was the highest-percentage in the major leagues, just ahead of Minnesotas Kyle Gibson at 11.3 percent and Mileys 11 percent.When the strike zone was last changed, umpires took years to adjust.MLB has used computer software to track umpires strike zones since 2001, which has helped bring the umpiring staff into closer alignment on balls and strikes. Umpires receive a grade now after every game worked behind the plate, and that has resulted in an expansion of the strike zone over much of the past decade.Any adjustment to a new rule-book definition would take time.Theyd have to start in the minor leagues. I think for some of the guys to try to adjust to a new strike zone is going to be chaotic, said umpire Bob Davidson, who worked his first big league game in 1982. I hope they just leave it the way it is. I think we call it now the way the rule book states.Offense has increased this season. Through Thursdays games, the big league batting average is .256, the highest for a first half since 2010, and teams have combined for 2.31 homers per game, the most in the first half since the Steroids Era peak in 2000.But one trend remains constant: strikeouts.Teams combined to average 15.95 strikeouts per game in June, the third-highest month in major league history behind September 2015 (15.96) and April 2016 (16.26), according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The last 28 months dating to September 2011 are the highest-strikeout 28 months in big league history.Were at an interesting time in the game, Gibson said. I think they should ask players about strikeouts and how much they care about strikeouts because I dont think its as frowned-upon as it used to be -- because a guy whos striking out a lot is probably also hitting a lot of homers. And if you ask anybody in here if theyll take a 150-strikeout and 30-homer year, theyre going to say, yeah, sign me up.The strike zone has changed many times -- by definition, not just opinion, like Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon calling Laz Diazs zone last weekend amorphic. The top was moved from the armpits to the top of the shoulders ahead of the 1963 season, then lowered before 1969 following a drop in offense. The top was redefined again before the 1968 season to the midpoint between the top of the shoulders and the top of the uniform pants -- where it remains.If the bottom came up, would the top come up, too? said Toronto pitcher R.A. Dickey, the 2012 NL Cy Young Award winner. If they want to introduce an era of better offense, then that would be one way to go, for sure. Because if youre having to elevate balls, thats right into the swing path of most hitters.But just raising the bottom alone likely would result in only a slight change.I think thats a tough pitch for umpires to call already. Not only are they blocked a little bit by the catcher, but the pitches that I throw down there arent straight four-seamers. Theyre sinking down already, Gibson said. I think most of those probably arent called strikes. Theyre probably groundballs or swings and misses or foul balls. ... But, yeah, raising the strike zone for me is going to be a little more difficult, depending on how they call that. But its just like any other rule change. Just like the slide rule at second. Im going to have to make an adjustment and hopefully its not an adjustment that causes me to get hit a whole lot. Cheap MLB Jerseys Free Shipping . At a news conference Tuesday where it was thought that the fiery Schallibaum may be shown the door after a dismal finish to the Major League Soccer season, team president Joey Saputo said no decision has been made on whether the Swiss Volcano will be back in 2014. Cheap MLB Jerseys Authentic . Having already announced that the race will start May 9 with three stages in Northern Ireland and Ireland and finish in Trieste on June 1, the rest of the route was unveiled Monday. http://www.wholesalemlbjerseys.us/ . Coach Tom Thibodeau says the former MVP will probably start travelling with the team in the next few weeks. Rose tore the meniscus in his right knee at Portland in November and was ruled out for the remainder of the season by the Bulls. Cheap Baseball Jerseys Online . The phone hearing is scheduled for 4:30pm et/1:30pm pt. Winchester, who was not penalized for the hit, appeared to make contact with Kellys head early in the first period of Thursdays game in Boston. Wholesale MLB Store . Tracey comes to the Blue Bombers after spending over a decade with Queens University. Most recently he was the schools assistant football coach. GURNEE, Ill. -- After a rough first day of the UL International Crown, the United States never considered new pairings.Cristie Kerr and company knew it would work itself out.Kerr and Lexi Thompson helped the U.S. to three out of four points against Thailand on Friday, and Melissa Reid drew praise for a gutsy effort for England after her partner was sidelined by illness.Kerr and Thompson routed Thailands Ariya Jutanugarn and Porani Chutichai 4 and 3 for the Americans first two points after they were shut out in the first session of the LPGA Tour event. The U.S. almost got a sweep, but Gerina Piller and Stacy Lewis each missed a birdie putt on 18 and had to settle for a single point against Moriya Jutanugarn and Pornanong Phatlum.Each of the four players were on the United States winning team in the 2015 Solheim Cup, and the victory in Germany helped convince them to stay with the same lineup after the opening session at Merit Club about 40 miles northwest of Chicago.I mean, we had so much success at Solheim Cup, and I just think we played so much together that why switch it up? It was never discussed, Lewis said.Lewis putt on 18 skirted the edge of the cup.I think if it was just a touch slower, 6 inches slower, it probably goes in, she said. But I thought it was perfect.With Charley Hull sidelined by a fever and complications from asthma, Reid was all alone for her four-ball match against Japans Haru Nomara and Mika Miyazato. Reid took it all the way to 18, where Nomura made a matching birdie to close out a 1-up win.For me, its a huge positive, Reid said. To get anywhere near the 18th was going to be a huge achievement, and I am just really, really pleased I gave the team a huge chance of even a point.Holly Clyburn and Jodi Ewart Shadoff halved their match against Ai Suzuki and Ayaka Watanabe, helping seventh-seeded England to the Pool B lead. Thailand and Japan were one back with four points apiece, and the U.S. was last after it finished sixth in the inaugural event in 2014.Taiwan topped Pool A with sixx points after it split its two matches with top-seeded South Korea.dddddddddddd Candie Kung and Ssu-Chia Cheng beat Amy Yang and In Gee Chun 2 and 1, but Yani Tseng and Teresa Lu trailed all day long in a 4-and-2 loss to Sei Young Kim and So Yeon Ryu.South Korea was second with four points, and Australia and China were tied for third with three apiece. Australia also was shut out in the first session, but Karrie Webb and Rebecca Artis teamed for a 2-and-1 win over Chinas Jing Yan and Simin Feng, and Minjee Lee and Su Oh halved their match with Xi Yu Lin and Shanshan Feng.Lins birdie on 14 gave China a 2-up lead, but Lee birdied 18 to secure the point for Australia. Lee played with Artis on Thursday, and Webb was with Oh.I think if a few things had gone our way yesterday, we could have gotten points on the board, but it just turned out that these two pairings worked, Webb said.There are eight more four-ball matches Saturday. The top two teams in each pool and the winner of wild-card playoff between the third-place teams advance to Sundays singles matches, with each player from the winning country taking home $100,000 apiece.The 20-year-old Hull, who helped England to a sweep of the United States on Thursday, sought medical attention when she arrived at the course. She is hoping to play on Saturday.I really wanted to join my partner Mel at some point during the match, but at the advice of the medical team, the best thing to do was to rest and get healthy for my team for tomorrow, she said in a statement released by the LPGA Tour.Reid holed out with a wedge from 70 yards on the par-4 13th, squaring the match. But Nomura birdied the final three holes to help Japan to the win.They finished birdie-birdie-birdie. I finished birdie-par-birdie, Reid said. Theres nothing you can really do. 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