I look at it like this... the whole point is what? 1. To make the game more appealing to younger fans and increase the fan base? Or is it 2. to make the game more appealing to watch on television, and thus increase television revenue? The public answer is 1, but the reality is probably 2.
To me, NASCAR is a good example. They had a product that was growing and they went with one TV contract and then later hit the big network deals. The tracks used to be filled with fans. They started killing off the smaller tracks in favor of bigger, cookie cutter tracks with more seats, all throughout the country. Then, they started tweaking the way they determine a champion. Races at the end of the season were meaningless if the points had been wrapped up. And at this point, the bread and butter was television, not butts in seats. And with television, and the races on Sunday, they were now competing with the NFL.
Is TV viewership up in NASCAR - no? Track attendance is way down. If the goal of MLB is to increase TV viewership, then maybe tweaking the game is the right way to go.
If they really want more attention, then more focus should be given to the homerun. We're back in reality now where a 30 homerun season is a big deal (and it should be a big deal). But once the public has had a dose of 70 homeruns in a year, and guys routinely hitting 40 and 50, you can't just bottle it up. Everybody digs the long ball.
Maybe they should just turn a blind eye like they were doing 15 years ago and the game might just explode in popularity again.