My personal opinion of the DH is that it should be used as a 'POWER PLAY' of sorts in baseball. In that both leagues, AL and NL should adopt the DH for the HOME TEAM only (81 games only). It will help attendance as more home teams would win and fans like winning at home. It is a greater challenge for the road team, but that is why you play 162 games a year. This is my opinion. --- On January 11, 1973,the owners of America’s 24 major league baseball teams vote to allow teams in theAmerican League (AL) to use a “designated pinch-hitter” that could bat for the pitcher, while still allowing the pitcher to stay in the game. The idea of adding a 10th man to the baseball lineup to bat for the pitcher had been suggested as early as 1906 by the revered player and manager Connie Mack. In 1928, John Heydler, then-president of the National League (NL), revived the issue, but the rule was rejected at that point by the AL management. By the early 1970s, Charlie Finley, the colorful owner of the Oakland A’s, had become the designated hitter rule’s most outspoken advocate, arguing that a pinch-hitter to replace the pitcher–a player that usually batted poorly, exceptions like the legendary Babe Ruth notwithstanding–would add the extra offensive punch that baseball needed to draw more fans. At a joint meeting of the two major leagues in Chicago on January 11, 1973, presided over by baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn, the owners voted to allow the AL (which lagged behind the NL in both scoring and attendance) to put the designated hitter rule into practice. The NL resisted the change, and for the first time in history, the two leagues would play using different rules. In addition, the introduction of the designated hitter (Rule 6.10) marked the biggest rule change in major league baseball since 1903, when it was decided that foul balls would be considered strikes. Though it initially began as a three-year experiment, it would be permanently adopted by the AL and later by most amateur and minor league teams. On April 6, 1973–Opening Day–Ron Blomberg of the New York Yankees became the league’s first ever designated hitter. In his first plate appearance, he was walked on a full count by the Boston Red Sox pitcher Luis Tiant. From the beginning, baseball purists decried the designated hitter in bitter, moralistic terms, arguing that it took away from baseball’s integrity. The rift between pro- and anti-designated hitter fans has continued into the present day. At first, the designated hitter rule did not apply to any games in the World Series, in which the AL and NL winners met for the world championship. From 1976-1985, it applied only to Series held in even-numbered years, and in 1986 the current rule took effect, according to which the designated hitter rule is used or not used according to the practice of the home team.
Your home team idea is even worse than the current situation with the two leagues playing different games. Every major league pitcher starts out as a great athlete, many in more than one sport. Most of these guys can also hit the ball, or could when they had to, look at what they did in high school and college. From then on all concentration is on them throwing the ball and their batting goes down the tubes. Somehow Steven Matz could still hit the ball in the minors and carried that with him today at Citifield. The people at the ballpark got their money's worth; how many of them would have preferred to see a fat guy hit a ball over the wall in the fourth inning? Strategy has always been a big part of the game and managers have always had to weigh the advantage of keeping a hot pitcher in the game or to yank him for a pinch hitter. The DH took a big part of that away, just another little step that has hurt the game and it's hard for anyone to make a financial case for this debacle like they can for killing the day game and then wondering why kids have little interest in the game. Some geezers can remember when kids hurried home from school to watch a game in the afternoon; a lot of them were fans because of that.
It really did change the game. I'd say the AL's 13 man pitching staff and 3 man bench are a direct result of the DH. The typical AL team now has a professional hitter who bats but doesn't field, 2 or 3 bench players (if, of,c) and a very large bullpen full of relief specialists. Rosters have really evolved, especially since 2005 or so.
Matz Syndergaard Harvey Syndergaard and Matz look like excellent hitting pitchers. Three starters that can hit well. A nice asset for the Mets. All the young starters look to be excellent defensively also, btw National League Baseball has pretty much made me a Mets fan over the Yanks
I'm torn on the issue. I like and understand the strategy without the DH in the NL. I love it when pitchers can hit like in the case of Matz last night. But I loathe the fact that most pitchers CAN'T hit. Its such a waste of time. As a fan I want to see the best players at their professional tasks. Making a pitcher hit takes that away. When a person is up to bat, I want to see a guy who can hit! Call me crazy! -making the pitchers hit in the NL seems to me like the NFL making the QBs punt, or kick field goals. They probably could do it to a degree but why not let them focus on what they are the best at and let the professional kickers, kick?
The problem is the inequality in both leagues. Make the DH league wide or get rid of it league wide. It's the only sport in the world where there are different rules depending on your conference. It makes no sense why it hasn't been unified.
Yeah but isn't it a distinct advantage for a team if you have pitchers who can actually hit? It's baseball, be a baseball player. I'd suspect most MLB pitchers in HS were superstar athletes playing SS or CF when they weren't pitching and were capable hitters. They were probably also the QB and the point guard, too. _
Baseball should just adopt the designated fielder rule as well. Why should teams have to weigh the risk vs reward of great fielders who don't hit that well or great hitters that can't field if they don't have to for pitchers? Baseball should just let teams stack their offense with guys who can hit and let the fielders specialize in the field. That's the concept of the DH for pitchers so it doesn't make sense to not permit it for the other fielding positions.
but they all suck ass at hitting! And we want them to do something they haven't done since high school? at the highest professional level? College Baseball has the DH, most minor leagues from Rookie A ball all the way up to AAA have the DH. All international leagues except one "conference" in the Japanese league (the NL of Japan) use DHs. That includes all the professional leagues in Central America. So even if they were great hitters in their high schools or their backyards in Venezuela by the time they make it to the MLB they haven't hit for YEARS. And only half of them would be asked to hit anyway. It seems ridiculous to me. Aaron Rodgers was probably his high school team's kicker and punter as well. These pros did everything back in the day. Should we make him kick field goals? It's football. be a football player? right?
Interestingly enough, I read a biography of Charlie Finley once, and believe it or not, that was basically the original premise, that you had one person you could replace with the DH. Obviously it was overwhelmingly intended to to be the pitcher, but the option was there to replace your light hitting shortstop as well.
Nobody was arguing for a DH in the 50's and early 60's when offenses were more balanced and people were hitting lots of home runs. Then they raised the mound and took something out of the ball and we got 5 years of low-scoring games. That's where the DH came from. The Cincinnati Reds and the Pittsburgh Pirates were both huge scoring machines in the 70's with no DH in sight. The AL should just have conceded the point after the mound was dropped back to it's normal height and the ball was livened up again. The DH is a travesty of a rule and it always has been.
Yeah but it's clear some pitchers can actually hit. They don't all completely suck ass, and if you have a pitcher who sucks ass less than your opponent, good for you. But I'm an NL guy so I hate the DH. _
That too! lol. I much prefer NL ball at this point. I like the aspects of the pitcher in the lineup and how a Manager has to work with that. Syndergaard and Matz are good hitters. That's huge a plus for them against their opponent. And they play D. They're good athletes that are playing a complete brand of baseball. I like that. As opposed to a guy like Big Papi...F that
Anyways, if I had to choose I would get rid of the DH position. In Cricket, even the bowlers at the bottom of the order get to bat
A lot do suck ass at hitting but that's because the pitchers are the most pampered players in the most pampered sport - there is plenty of crying in baseball. Virtually all of these guys were good hitters at one time; they just need to be put in the cage a few times a week and actually spend some time with a batting coach - it's not like they don't have the time when they really only work three hours a week. And for god's sake, why are there still some of those guys wearing those stupid rope necklaces?
pitchers are coddled too much, can't disagree with that. I get so pissed off watching baseball when they take a guy out cause he's thrown XX pitches no matter what and they have a pussy system to protect his arm. I'm not even convinced such a pampering policy works as these same guys are throwing out their arms anyway
