November 8th, 2013 at 6:00 am 
by Ron Cervenka We all know it’s coming – the last thing left between old-fashioned real baseball and the so-called modern era baseball. I am, of course, referring to the designated hitter rule coming to the National League. The writing is on the wall and actually has been for quite some time – over a hundred years, in fact.
The DH has been part of college baseball and the minor leagues for years. It is used in the Caribbean Leagues, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China, Australia, Cuba and in the World Baseball Classic. In fact, the only place that it is not routinely used is in Little League, MLB’s National League (except during interleague and World Series games played in AL ballparks) and in the Nippon Professional Baseball Central League. (Note: It is also not used in some Double-A and Triple-A minor league games in which both teams are NL affiliate teams).
David Ortiz became only the second DH in MLB history to win World Series MVP honors, joining Yankees Hideki Matsui who did so in 2009. Big Papi may also one day become the first DH to enter the Hall of Fame. (Photo credit – Jamie Squire)
As much as baseball purists despise it, the DH is coming to the National League – and probably sooner than later.
Realistically, we probably won’t see the DH in the National League before the 2017 season, if for no other reason than the current MLB/MLBPA Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) is in effect through the 2016 season. But speculation is that it will be included in the subsequent CBA and when it finally happens, it will most likely never go away. And here’s the kicker – the language for bringing the DH to the National League is already in the MLB rule book, so it will be a CBA matter and not imposed by Bud Selig’s replacement. (Selig has already announced his retirement as the MLB Commissioner at the conclusion of the 2014 season).
Interestingly, the idea of the DH rule has been around almost as long as the game itself. The idea of adding a 10th man to the baseball lineup to bat for the pitcher had been suggested as early as 1906 by revered player and manager Connie Mack, but it was overwhelmingly rejected. In 1928 John Heydler, then-president of the National League, revisited the idea but the rule was again rejected – ironically by American League team owners.
By the early 1970s Oakland A’s colorful owner Charlie O. Finley had become baseball’s most outspoken advocate of the designated hitter rule, arguing that a pinch hitter to replace the pitcher (who was unquestionably the weakest hitter in every team’s lineup – Zack Greinke notwithstanding) would add the additional offensive punch that baseball needed to draw more fans out to the ballparks.
Finley took his argument to a January 11, 1973 meeting between team owners from both leagues, a meeting that was chaired by (then) MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn. While AL owners voted to adopt the DH rule for the American League (which had fallen behind the NL in both scoring and attendance) to put the designated hitter rule into practice in 1973, the National League owners overwhelmingly rejected the change – thus, for the first time in MLB history, the two leagues would operate under different rules.
The new designated hitter rule (MLB Rule 6.10) marked the biggest rule change in major league baseball since 1903, when the rules were changed to make foul balls count as strikes. And though the DH rule initially began as a three-year experiment, it would become a permanently rule without ever being revisited.
On opening day, April 6, 1973, Ron Blomberg of the New York Yankees became Major League Baseball’s first designated hitter. In his first plate appearance, he walked on a full count off of popular Boston Red Sox pitcher Luis Tiant.
If the DH rule does, in fact, come to the National League in 2017, Greinke will forever be remembered as one of the final four National League pitchers to win a Silver Slugger Award – and perhaps the last if he can repeat his incredible feat for the next three years.
Although a tall order, if Dodger pitcher Zack Greinke can repeat his outstanding hitting over the next three seasons, he very well may become baseball’s last pitcher to win a Sliver Slugger Award. (Photo credit – Benny Sieu)
Here is the designated hitter rule from the MLB rule book:
MLB Rule 6.10
Any League may elect to use the Designated Hitter Rule.
(a) In the event of inter-league competition between clubs of Leagues using the Designated Hitter Rule and clubs of Leagues not using the Designated Hitter Rule, the rule will be used as follows:
1. In World Series or exhibition games, the rule will be used or not used as is the practice of the home team.
2. In All-Star games, the rule will only be used if both teams and both Leagues so agree.
(b) The Rule provides as follows:
A hitter may be designated to bat for the starting pitcher and all subsequent pitchers in any game without otherwise affecting the status of the pitcher(s) in the game. A Designated Hitter for the pitcher must be selected prior to the game and must be included in the lineup cards presented to the Umpire in Chief.
The designated hitter named in the starting lineup must come to bat at least one time, unless the opposing club changes pitchers.
It is not mandatory that a club designate a hitter for the pitcher, but failure to do so prior to the game precludes the use of a Designated Hitter for that game.
Pinch hitters for a Designated Hitter may be used. Any substitute hitter for a Designated Hitter becomes the Designated Hitter. A replaced Designated Hitter shall not re-enter the game in any capacity.
The Designated Hitter may be used defensively, continuing to bat in the same position in the batting order, but the pitcher must then bat in the place of the substituted defensive player, unless more than one substitution is made, and the manager then must designate their spots in the batting order.
A runner may be substituted for the Designated Hitter and the runner assumes the role of Designated Hitter. A Designated Hitter may not pinch run.
A Designated Hitter is locked into the batting order. No multiple substitutions may be made that will alter the batting rotation of the Designated Hitter.
Once the game pitcher is switched from the mound to a defensive position this move shall terminate the Designated Hitter role for the remainder of the game.
Once a pinch hitter bats for any player in the batting order and then enters the game to pitch, this move shall terminate the Designated Hitter role for the remainder of the game.
Once the game pitcher bats for the Designated Hitter this move shall terminate the Designated Hitter role for the remainder of the game. (The game pitcher may only pinch-hit for the Designated Hitter.)
Once a Designated Hitter assumes a defensive position this move shall terminate the Designated Hitter role for the remainder of the game. A substitute for the Designated Hitter need not be announced until it is the Designated Hitters turn to bat.
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I don’t remember TBLA every “talking” about how they feel about the DH. I am 100% wishy-washy on the subject 🙂 I love the finesse of the game with the pitcher hitting and I love it when the Dodgers have good hitting pitchers like Zach and Clayton and Ryu. But when we don’t, I don’t love it. I like it when we are playing other NL teams unless we have a couple of great hitting bench players – like a David Ortiz – then I don’t like it. I like it when we play inter-league in our park because the AL pitchers are, for the most part, horrible. I like it in the WS in the NL park. I don’t believe the AL managers are quite as equipped to make changes with their pitchers hitting. But, on the other hand, I don’t think statistics bears out NL favored with pitchers hitting – someone can look that up.
If it changes in 2017, I can stop being wishy-washy and get used to the DH.
Anyone else so positive about how they feel as I am?????
I’m also wishy-washy about the DH. I wish they would take it and wash it down the drain.
I plan to be around for a few years and I expect in my last season I will see a DH in the NL, electronic calling of balls and strikes along with decisions on the bases, intentional walk without throwing the four pitches and a tenth man in the field to be a rover.
When I was a kid donkey softball came to town. Donkey softball (must have been Democrats, eh!)was very entertaining but even as kids we knew it didn’t resemble the real thing. Now the King And His Court did when they came to town.
That’s where baseball is going. That is, into something the boys of summer wouldn’t recognize and it won’t be as entertaining as it was in the past. Taking the decision making out of the game – managerial decisions with the DH and removing umpire decisions from the game – will make it rather dull. The only controversy will be over the unwritten rules that don’t impact the game on the field other than taking players off of their game.
I remember when the DH ruling was first discussed, there was a fear of creating a DH for other position players. Like a DH for the 2nd baseman or shottstop, especially when these players were seldom power hitters, so to speak.
After the DH ruling went into affect in the AL, for a while this fear still existed but it’s been a long, long time since I’ve read anything about it.
For many years I’ve been against the DH coming to the NL but in recent years, I’ve found that it could’ve helped the Dodgers on many occasions. For or Against? I don’t feel as much against it as I use to be.
I hate the DH rule (and y’all know “hate” is a word I seldom use). There is no logical reason to have 8 players playing both offense and defense and 1 player on defense and another on offense. I’d much rather see replays and electronic ball and strike calls than the DH.
We’ve actually discussed the DH rule many times in the ThinkBlueLA forum over the years, Linda. Most of our regulars (who are ‘getting up there’) are NL old-school traditionalists who are opposed to just about any change from ‘the good old days.’ A few have come around to agree that instant replay is needed (primarily because of the increased frequency of blatantly blown calls), but the DH rule is an entirely different animal that we all pretty much do not like.
Conversely, most MLB players favor the DH rule in both leagues – not all, but most; and we ALL know the reason why – it’s all about the money.
The number one argument to bring the DH into the NL is to create more jobs for otherwise ‘over-the-hill’ or washed up defensive players who can still swing a mean bat. This and this alone will ultimately be the deciding factor for the DH coming to the NL – and, as noted in the above article, it’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when.
Like most old-school guys, I am opposed to the DH rule – always have been, but there is zero doubt that between the two possible choices (A. Doing away with the DH in the AL; or B. Adding the DH to the NL), B is going to win by a very wide margin over A.
Harold – I sincerely hope that you are around for many more years (so that we can continue to enjoy our spirited debates on this stuff), but I think it’s safe to say that neither of us will ever see electronic balls and strikes or a 10th player on the field. I do, however, believe that once the wrinkles are ironed out of the instant replay thing over the next couple of years, it will be expanded even further (for things like those ‘area code’ plays at 2nd base, balks, and the other plays that are currently excluded from review – of which there are actually quite a few). But I think that James Loney’s (tongue in cheek) cry for ‘Robo Umps’ is still a ways off.
My reason (and the only reason) to embrace the DH in the NL has absolutely nothing to do with a pitcher’s inability to hit; it has everything to do with pitchers (especially those in which teams are heavily invested) getting hurt running the bases, sliding, breaking up double plays, etc. It’s not that as professional baseball players they shouldn’t be able to do these things, it’s that they don’t spend the same amount of time working on them as do position players because they are focusing on their pitching.
When the DH finally does comes to the NL, we don’t have to like it but we will have no choice but to accept it.
The tenth man on the field was just a throw in, in jest. It would help remove more decisions from managers (as does the DH) with a defensive shift as there would be a rover. However, it would cut down on offense which is the prime reason for having the DH. My only reason for ever having a DH in the NL would be to standardize things for inter league and WS play. So conversely, I propose it be scrapped by the AL to get things again standardized.
As stated before, in my opinion, more mistakes are made with balls and strikes than with any other umpire decisions in the game. That makes perfect sense as they call 300/350 pitches a game. To me if is folly to bring in instant replays on the bases and not try to remove the missed calls at the plate. Any wonder I like James Loney? LOL
And what do you mean – “getting up there”? I am up there now.
I meant the rest of us.
OK. That’s better.
The biggest sign that this will most likely come to be happened just this year. All Star Game at Citi Field, the home of the NL Mets, was played under AL rules. The DH was used in a National League park and there wasn’t even any real coverage about it before the game. It just happened a bit under the radar. While it is an exhibition (kind of) this is a pretty big deal, especially as it pertains to how the league views the use if the DH now.
Not only would it add more offense but it will potentially protect pitchers while allowing them to ‘retaliate’ without having to step into the box themselves.
That being said, I’m against it.
tb55 – allowing pitchers to retaliate without stepping into the box. That can’t be a consideration. Being able to throw at hitters but not being at risk themselves is just chicken crap.
“Chicken Crap” !!!!
Does your wife know you talk like that??
Let’s keep it as our little secret.
Gonna be a lot of “chicken crap” flying next season – this was all over Twitter today:
#Diamondbacks owner on #Dodgers: “We owe those guys”
That DBags owner is a real POS and is looking for a big-time reprimand and fine from MLB with statements like that. But we already know what a bad guy he is, don’t we?!!!
Can the D’backs owner actually get fined by MLB for statements made on Twitter and the like?