Seth Brown made some unfortunate Athletics history Monday night at the Oakland Coliseum, becoming the team's first batter to fall victim to MLB's new pitch clock.
Facing a 1-2 count in the second inning, Brown wasn't set in the batter's box in time. The umpire called a batter pitch clock violation, and Brown walked back to the dugout with a strikeout.
"Seth Brown strikes out on automatic strike," the play-by-play description reads on MLB.com.
Per MLB rules, pitchers have 15 seconds between pitches with nobody on base and 20 seconds if runners occupy the basepaths.
Hitters must be in the batter's box and alert to the pitcher with at least eight seconds remaining on the clock. If not -- like in Brown's case -- a strike is called, even if there already are two strikes in the count.
On the flip side, a pitcher must start his delivery before the clock expires. If not, an automatic ball is called.
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Brown's automatic strikeout was the lone blemish in Oakland's productive second inning. The A's plated five runs and knocked Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Zach Plesac out of the game.
Through five innings, the A's -- looking to improve to 2-2 this season -- led the Guardians 8-5.