Two nights ago, New York Yankees star DJ LeMahieu became the first batter to lead off an inning by hitting into a double play. The New York Mets’ reliever, Edwin Diaz, got a two-batter inning, which has never before happened in the top half of an inning. This was made possible by the bad baserunning of Tyler Wade, but also by the bad new rules of Major League Baseball. (The Mets would win the game on a walk-off home run by slugger Pete Alonso in the bottom of the 10th.)

In an effort to increase scoring in extra innings, each team now begins its half of the inning with a runner on second base. This makes it possible, for the first time in baseball history, for the first batter of an inning to hit into a double play.