Baseball is a sport that, more than any other, is full of tradition. It is one of the reasons that I personally love it so much; it is all about the tradition, and one of the traditions is that one of the leagues, the National League, does not have a designated hitter. This means the pitcher is forced to bat as well, just like any other player that takes the field. They usually bat last in lineup and are typically an easy out because they do not practice hitting as much as they do pitching. However, there has been talk that Major League Baseball might add the designated hitter as early as 2017. This is shocking because baseball has always been about tradition, and it was only in 1973 that the American League adopted the rule for a designated hitter to be used instead of a pitcher. However, I believe the National League should stay away from the designated hitter.
As much as I love watching players seem to be overweight or just too old to really do much more than walk up to the base and hit the ball, it is far more enjoyable to see a team build a strategy around the pitcher actually having to try and hit the ball. And is there really any player that is more enjoyable to watch hit a home run than a pitcher? Think about it: there will always be the players that can belt out home run after home run, but how about that pitcher who has a batting average of .025 that hits a home run that changes the outcome of the game?
Some pitchers love to actually bat; Madison Bumgarner is one and he has gone on the record stating as much. If a pitcher doesn’t like to hit then he can easily sign with an American League team; that will keep him out of the batter’s box until that American League team has to play a National League team in the NL team’s ballpark. Babe Ruth began his career as a pitcher and was considered a pretty good one at that. That’s right, folks: the Great Bambino pitched forr the Boston Red Sox. The New York Yankees moved him to the outfield to take advantage of his hitting talent more than his pitching ability.
The only argument I will truly understand for a designated hitter in the National League is that it reduces the risk of injury. Pitchers are already put great strain on their arms and bodies by pitching; some people argue that there is no reason to risk further injury by requiring that they also bat. Adam Wainwright suffered an injury not too long ago in that exact manner. However, there is always a chance that a player will get injured no matter what they do; there will always be a chance of a freak injury. Hitting might increase this chance slightly, but a pitcher might injure himself on each pitch he throws. Plenty of pitchers have suffered injuries due to the ball coming off the bat quickly and hitting them before they have time to react.
If MLB does decide to actually go through with this rule change, I won’t stop watching baseball by any means, but I will be disappointed. It might mean more hits, but is there truly any proof that the American League scores more runs than the National League because of the DH? Until next time, keep your eye on the ball.
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