No

by Jay Nolan

Created on: May 19, 2010

The “Designated Hitter” is much too entrenched in Major League Baseball for it to be abolished. The DH has gained a tremendous fan base in the American League. It has brought more offense to the game and has given some players a second chance. And most importantly it has allowed players like Ken Griffey Jr., Hank Aaron and Carl Yastrzemski to still contribute in the twilight of their career.

The DH was introduced to the American League in 1973. This rule change was meant to boost run production and bring more fans to the park. Offenses slumped during the pitching friendly decade of the 1960s. The higher mound and generous strike zone impacted the game so much so, that in 1968 Carl Yastrzemski won the AL Batting Title with a .301 average.

The game of baseball is constantly evolving. Rule changes have affected the way the game is played since its inception over 125 years ago. The dead ball era saw its demise, as did the “spit ball” in the early 1900s. One player, Babe Ruth, changed the way the game of baseball was played because he could hit home runs. Ruth’s prodigious home runs instantly won over fans that had lost faith in baseball due to the “Black Sox” scandal of 1919.

Instant offense was a new thing. Once Ruth began clouting homers by the bushel full owners took notice. Offense had drawing power and fans liked to see players hit home runs. Long gone were the days of station to baseball; where bunting and timely hitting to eke out runs was the norm. Now fans wanted the long ball.

Players like Foxx, Gehrig, Mantle, Mays, Aaron, and Williams emerged as power hitters and baseball flourished. During this time pitchers were considered hitters. Hitting was part of the game and pitchers were supposed to hit. Baseball was different then. Teams did not have specialized pinch hitters whose only job it was to come off the bench a few times a week when the matchup was favorable. A pitcher was treated like every other player when he came to the plate. He was paid to hit. Most pitchers today embarrass themselves when they step up to the plate. They look lost and it’s pathetic that they would not try to help the team and learn how to hit. It might even help them win the game and would definitely earn them more money.

The DH has prolonged the careers of many players. When a player is not physically capable of playing the field on an everyday basis the DH becomes a welcome option. No one wants to see a great player like Aaron with his skills eroding lose his dignity. During Hank’s Hall of Fame career he spent 21 seasons with the Braves organization in the National League. Then he moved on to the Milwaukee Brewers where he played in 202 games as a DH and only 4 as a fielder. He was able to hit another 22 home runs with the Brewers bringing his career total to 755. I look at this move as a tribute to a great player. Because of the DH he was able to play two more years in the city where his career began. He retired on his terms and the fans got to see him one more time. This is the beauty of the DH

Hall of Famers Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor, George Brett, Orlando Cepeda, and Jim Rice spent the last few years of their career as a DH. In the case of Winfield and Molitor they won their first World Series championship. For the others it was just a way to continue playing because they were still able to hit well even though their ability to play the field had diminished.

Currently Ken Griffey Jr. is the DH of the Seattle Mariners. His career started in Seattle where he was arguably one of the greatest fielding centerfielders the game has ever seen. He was also one of the greatest hitters and on pace to break Hank Aaron’s all time home run record. He was even voted to the All Century team in 1999. Ken signed with the Cincinnati Reds in 2000 but was oft injured. He had problems with his legs and unfortunately he needed them as a centerfielder. His value to the Reds as a bench player was not worth what they were paying him. If the Reds were an American League team he would have been their designated hitter and taken the pressure off of his legs and probably continued as the offensive juggernaut he was with Seattle. Now he is back in Seattle in what appears as his farewell tour. This is why I like the DH.

Over the next few years we will see if the Baseball Writers Association feels that the DH is a position that should be represented in the Hall of Fame. Edgar Martinez played over 1400 games as a DH for Seattle.  Early in his career he was converted from a fielder to a DH because he was not very good in the field. Edgar went on to be the greatest DH of all time. He led the AL in hitting twice and was a 7 time all star. Edgar finished his career .312 batting average ranking him 95th overall. He also has over 500 doubles, 300 home runs, 1250 runs batted in and 2200 hits. These are Hall of Fame numbers ranking him as one of the top 150 hitters of all time. But the purists will try to denigrate the DH position saying that he didn’t have to play the field so its not the same. Well they said the same thing with relief pitchers. And now there are 6 relief pitches in the Hall of Fame.

I don’t think I would like to see the National League adopt the DH. It’s better to keep a nice contrast between the leagues. The NL game is slightly different because the pitcher bats. The manager is forced to make moves with the pitcher in mind. You will never see a double switch in the American League. That is when a fielder and pitcher are replaced at the same time and the new pitcher takes over the batting position of the fielder. This will happen late in a game with the pitcher coming to bat in the next inning and the team being behind. A lot of purists think that the DH ruins the game and takes away a lot of the gamesmanship that you will find in NL games. They feel that he sits on the bench all day thus making it easier to hit. Nonsense to that is what I say.

Overall the DH plays an important role in the history of major league baseball. Players who would have retired are able to play on AL teams for a little longer. There will always be fans that dislike the DH and fans the love it. Ask Boston if they like David Ortiz or Texas if they like Vlad Guerrero. Either way, the job of the DH is difficult and the designated hitter is here to stay.

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