If you are a National League fan, like me (I’ve rooted for the Dodgers since my t-ball days), you will either love or loathe this
(Dodgers Nation) Baseball purists, you’re going to want to look away. Fans of keeping the designated hitter out of the National League are going to be very disappointed in the MLB. (snip)
Reports then surfaced that MLB and the player’s union were closing in on a deal to get things moving, which was later refuted. The league has sent over a proposal to the union, but that has yet to officially be agreed on or denied at this point. In that agreement though, there was one interesting change to play.
The designated hitter has long been held strictly to the American League and AL home games. That might be changing, as the new agreement would make the DH universal for 2020 and 2021. If that’s the case, it’s likely that the DH will be universal in the next collective bargaining agreement as well.
Not good
Will a pitcher ever hit for himself again in Major League Baseball?
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The shortened 2020 MLB season is paving the way for the universal designated hitter, equalizing the American and National Leagues for the first time since 1973.
According to the proposed agreement for this year and next, the universal DH will be instituted beginning this season. The deal also calls for the DH next year.
Couple that with the belief the DH was going to become universal in the next collective bargaining agreement (2021), and could it mean we’ve seen a pitcher bat for himself for the final time in Major League Baseball history?
That’s not to say a pitcher will never bat again. Some may be utilized as a pinch-hitter. But a NL manager will never be forced to write in his starting pitcher’s name into the lineup card. Relievers no longer carry the burden (as long as they face three batters!) of leaving the game when their spot in the order is due up.
While seeing a big slugger, usually someone who has been kicked out of playing a position as they get older, maybe the knees are not so good anymore, come up and destroy a ball is exciting. But, having pitchers bat and then getting all sorts of substitutes later in the game makes it a chess match in the NL. Do you keep the pitcher in and let them bat, or have a substitute hitter, meaning you need a new pitcher and you’re down 1 on the bench? What happens if the game goes extra innings? Do you have enough pitchers? Will they run out of gas? I’m not a big fan of the DH. We’ll see if the Player’s Association accepts this proposal.
What do you think?
