Exposing the Impact of Shortened Fences on MLB Home Run Totals

Contrary to popular belief, the best way to get from Point A to Point B is not, in fact, a straight line.

The best way is to shorten the distance between the two points whenever possible. Which it is in this case, where Point A is home plate and Point B is the outfield seats.

In other words, move the fences in.

With pitching on the rise and offense on the decline over the past few seasons, it's no surprise the Mariners and Padres decided to do just that this past offseason.

Of course, the Mariners and Padresalso have been two of the worst offenses in baseball in recent years. They need all the help they can get, even if it takes a little stadium nip here, a small ballpark tuck there.

Bringing in the fences seems like a logical solution to the question, "How do we hit more home runs without getting better hitters?" but...does it work?

In the past decade, four teams have reconsidered the distances necessary to hit one out and deemed their fences were too far: the Tigers, Mets, Mariners and Padres.

For each club's ballpark, we'll...

Let's take these one by one.

Excerpt from:
Exposing the Impact of Shortened Fences on MLB Home Run Totals