Sound of silence: Baseball thinking ahead to silent stadiums

Tom Murphy has become somewhat of an online sensation during baseball’s shutdown for the array of workouts the Seattle Mariners' catcher posts on Instagram from his home in upstate New York.

While staying in shape is a priority, Murphy also is thinking ahead. As in, how the game’s strategy might need to shift if teams have to play in empty stadiums.

“It’s going to be one of those things that it’s going to add some different aspects to the game,” Murphy said.

Whenever baseball returns after the delay caused by the coronavirus pandemic, there’s an element that might come into play like never before: the sound of silence.

The crack of the bat and the pop of a glove might resonate with a rich, deep echo that invokes the nostalgia of the game — back to the days of playing in front of just family and friends in Little League or high school when the loudest noises were the ping of an aluminum bat and an overzealous parent. But a quiet ballpark also means a drastic departure for pro athletes accustomed to roaring crowds.

“It’s going to be weird, there’s no question about it. It’s going to be very weird. We’re so used to having fans in the stands,” Washington manager Davey Martinez said. "I’ve been in professional baseball since 1983. This will be a first. This will be a first for me. Even in the minor leagues, we had fans. This is new territory for a lot of us, but it’s going to be part of it if we get started.”

The din of noise associated with baseball is essentially a masking agent. It could be just the general murmur of the crowd engaged in normal conversation, music being pumped through the stadium audio between pitches or the wave of noise after a particularly exciting play.

In Murphy’s case, he worries about what a batter might be...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Sound-of-silence-Baseball-thinking-ahead-to-15255829.php