MLB Tries Again with Short Season, Skewed Rules

NEW YORK (AP) — By the time Major League Baseball returns in late July, it will have been more than four months since teams last played. The season is now going to be a 60-game sprint to the finish, held in ballparks without fans and featuring some unusual rules. There will be a designated hitter in the National League and extra innings will start with an automatic runner on second base. Fans already have started to wonder whether anyone can hit .400, a mark that hasn't been achieved since Ted Williams did it in 1941. And they are certain to debate how legitimate a World Series trophy is when it's awarded after such a short season.