The Boyfriend and The Baseball Buddy Weigh In On The Designated Hitter

Okay, what about this designated hitter thing? It’s not as big and divisive an issue as it used to be, but I find people still have an opinion.

Just a refresher for folks who are learning the game. The Designated Hitter or DH, is a player who bats in place of the pitcher. The DH does not have to play on the field during the defensive part of the game. He just bats and the pitcher is relieved of any batting duties. So he usually is a power hitter who can really slam the ball. The DH is used in the American League, but not the National League and therefore lies the controversy.

Some people think the American League teams have more exciting baseball because there are more homeruns and Runners Batted In because of the Designated Hitter. But other fans claim that the National League without the DH has more interesting strategy of switching out players and strategically changing the batting dynamics in the process. Some claim this makes for better overall baseball.

In the movie Bull Durham, Crash Davis (played by Kevin Costner) says in his famous "I Believe" speech that "there should be a constitutional amendment outlawing astroturf and the Designated Hitter". (Yikes! Astro turf and the DH regarded as being on the same level. It doesn't get more harsh than that. ) The American League started using the Designated Hitter in 1973 (yep, it was the Yankees who did it first, gosh darn it) but the National League still makes the pitcher a regular part of the lineup. The Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League also doesn’t use it, but baseball in Japan is a whole ‘nother entry.

So I went back to my mentors as I often do and gave them a chance to give me their thoughts on the designated hitter.

The Baseball Buddy who knows a lot about baseball and loves to talk about these kind of things writes:

"My feelings on the designated hitter are mixed.

"The good news is: the DH rule has extended the careers of some great players. Because of the DH we were able to watch Dave Winfield swat a few extra homers at a time in his life when he would have otherwise been swatting golf balls.

"The bad news is: It compromises the game's strategy. Baseball is probably the world's most complex game next to chess and cricket (a game incomprehensible to anyone who has not carried an umbrella when the sun was out or spread yeast-paste on his morning toast.) I think that anything that robs strategic options from the game lessens it. Players are better athletes these days--pitchers hit better and hitters hit longer into their careers. I'd like to see the DH go."

The Boyfriend has an opinion, too. He counters:

"I like the designated hitter. I think that overweight, overage, lousy fielders should have an opportunity to play big league baseball too. Sarcasm aside, it really changes the dynamics of the game. There is less strategy, more booming bats. Less stealing and manufactured runs and more macho big bang ‘em up home runs where the overweight, overage, lousy fielders trot around the bases like a dog strolling down the street on a hot summer day. No double switches, here another player is taken out of the game so the pitcher doesn’t have to come up to bat soon after he has been brought in for relief…

"But…Then there was Edgar... One of the best hitters I have ever seen. I’m not sure if he ever held a glove in his hand…but…would I enjoy baseball as much if it wasn’t for Edgar?"

Sigh. Got to love a man who loves Edgar Martinez as much as I do. One of the reasons I stuck with The Boyfriend all these years.