CLEVELAND (AP) — The Major League Baseball All-Star Game is set to trot out a new rule this week if the game goes to extra innings.
Starting in the 10th, an automatic runner will be put at second base to begin the top half and bottom half of each inning.
The rule is already used in the minor leagues, international competitions and Olympic softball.
The goal is to keep games from going on and on, and to save wear and tear on pitching staffs.
The last two All-Star Games have gone to extra innings.
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Texas prospect Sam Huff’s two-run homer in the seventh inning rallied the American League to a 2-2 tie with the National League and provided the first glimpse of the tiebreaker in the Futures Game.
This year’s format was changed with the game shortened from nine to seven innings, and Huff’s homer off Colorado’s Ben Bowden forced the game into the eighth. Huff was named MVP.
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There’s more than a trophy and bragging rights up for grabs in this year’s All-Star Home Run Derby.
There’s also a $1 million prize for the winner.
Eight contestants will swing for the fences in Monday’s competition, which has grown in popularity and has sometimes overshadowed the All-Star Game.
Milwaukee’s Christian Yelich, the reigning NL MVP who has 31 homers, dropped out Sunday with a back injury.