VIERA, Fla. -- Nationals manager Dusty Baker missed the last two innings of the team's intrasquad game on Sunday because he had a meeting with Joe Torre, Major League Baseball's chief baseball officer, and Jim Leyland, who's serving as a special advisor to Commissioner Rob Manfred, to discuss recently announced changes to rules on the field.
Baker said he needed to be more up to speed about the rule changes -- which include redefining what constitutes a legal slide while breaking up a double play and limiting mound visits by managers and coaches to 30 seconds -- before talking things over with his players.
• Spring:Tickets | Ballpark | 40-man roster | NRIs
Baker said he also discussed replay reviews and challenging calls.
"It's not about being right and wrong as much as it is what is best for my club at the time and how it's going to impact the outcome of the game," he said.
Baker said he was genuinely glad to see Torre and Leyland. Baker and Torre were teammates with the Braves in the late 1960s, while Torre helped Baker when the latter was battling cancer. Leyland also helped Baker with managing Barry Bonds, who played for Leyland when both were with the Pirates.