Is Baton Pass (with specific reference to full Baton Pass teams) a problem for the development of the metagame?
No.
There are enough Pokemon who can outwit a Baton Pass team if they were just included in more teams, period. Running things like SubCoil Zygarde that use Ninjask/Scolipede as set-up bait while it wastes time letting Zyggy get enough boosts to either kill something with Earthquake/Extremespeed or otherwise phaze it out with Dragon Tail is often hilarious. Talonflame itself can just derail two party members while operating a Choice Band. If needed, someone with Haze (I personally love Milotic for this, but Quagsire, Cofagrigus, Dusknoir, etc are also really funny for this role - not all of them are viable, obviously, but there's still enough things which derail BP) will just laugh at the silly Espeon thinking it's OU viable outside of Baton Pass. Does anybody use Mega-Abomasnow outside of me? I think it laughs in Vaporeon's face, albeit that's just me. It or Mega-Venusaur can just use Vappy as Leech Seed bait (if it's in the lead slot), and Leech Seed gets carried with anything else that gets BP'd. Otherwise, I can just priority Switcheroo with either a Whimsicott or a Klefki to give something a Flame Orb or other crippling status before a Sub is set up (I always expect a Ninjask or Scolipede to have White Herb, so Taunt isn't too useful - Klefki doesn't come with Taunt doe). Rotom-Wash, Rotom-Heat, Rotom-Mow, Rotom-Fridge, Prankster Sableye, and many others can also Trick a Choice item onto a Pokemon in the Baton Pass chain to render them utterly useless for the entire match. While Drizzle is nerfed, Choice Specs Politoed can still put the hurt on something. Otherwise, Politoed and Celebi are still pretty good and can use Perish Song, among others (While I normally try not to advocate NFEs or advise against NFEs, Prankster Murkrow's pretty good for Perish Song usage, too).
By the time a BP chain gets going it could easily take hazard damage. If something isn't getting T-Waved by Jolteon, Prankster Klefki, Thundurus-I, or something ludicrously speedy... you're not in any immediate danger. Just get something that normally hits like a truck, chuck a Choice Band/Choice Specs on it, and watch those Subs easily break. Doesn't Landorus-T do massive damage with its U-turn on the regular and basically laugh in Espeon's face while wearing a Scarf? Or am I grossly mistaken in my numerous attempts to run a Baton Pass team that have failed? I get the feeling people underestimate Crobat and Chandelure, as their Infiltrator sets are actually pretty gorgeous. I'm surprised they aren't being used more often. While Mr. Mime kind of laughs at these, moves that naturally go past Substitutes, like Bug Buzz and Hyper Voice, work wonders to distort other Baton Pass users. Something like Meloetta or Volcarona is what I'd recommend against these guys.
If so, what elements, in particular, do you think are pushing Baton Pass over the edge?
There's not a whole lot that really pushes Baton Pass over the edge. Honestly, shutting down the Baton Pass chain is as easy as getting rid of Mr. Mime. His Soundproof ability in conjunction with being really good in Baton Pass teams is what would push BP over the edge. I'd probably also hazard a notion that Sylveon's also kind of to blame for people being butthurt about losing to BP teams, even though mono-Fairy's not that good when Sylveon has a bad physical defense in need of patching up, and there are enough physically-based Steel-types to give Sylveon hell. It doesn't help that Mr. Mime got buffed this generation by having Psychic/Fairy as a really good defensive typing. Do you believe that banning individual Pokémon (such as Espeon/Scolipede) would make Baton Pass manageable?
Yes. Ban Mr. Mime, then if needed ban Sylveon. Sylveon's like a better version of Espeon and Umbreon if they combined and, instead of getting Dark/Psychic and being easily U-turn'd to death, getting a solid defensive typing (Mono-Fairy's above average) with which would require me to get a physically-based Poison or Steel 'mon to slam dunk to the ground. Two Fairies, the latter (Sylveon) also really good at being a defensive Cleric, can easily be sent to Uber if that's what it takes.
Would you support a blanket ban on the move Baton Pass?
*laughs for a few seconds maniacally, before eventually calming down* Absolutely not. Only two, possibly three if I wanted to take Espeon with more than a grain of salt, viable Pokemon are causing trouble with Baton Pass. Preventing DryPasses to avoid Pursuits and QuickPasses to not have a Pokemon's ass thoroughly kicked is just silly, and even though Gen VI OU isn't as bad as Gen V OU, making it bad by doing blanket bans on moves is already happening anyway.
Would you support the introduction of complex bans (like Pokémon X+Pokémon Y on the same team)? Feel free to suggest more forms of complex bans, of course.
Complex bans give people a reason to be butthurt about Blaziken still not being accessible in OU, and for that reason alone I'm against complex bans. There are also vastly superior reasons with which I'm viciously against complex bans: We're not supposed to use complex bans to solve problems; it goes against our own policies and principles! It also makes Zarel's job harder than it really needs to be!
