- Joined
- Aug 3, 2013
- Messages
- 4,337
What do you think? Where do you stand on the DH in the National League?
Are the 'holdouts' simply imagining pre-mid 80's baseball still exists? Or how much strategy will be taken from the game? Like those very difficult double switches? Or that bunting? Oh, that all important #8 hitter getting on base with 2 outs is exciting!!! Isn't it time to acknowledge pitching and how managers use the bullpen has made the DH in the NL lineup a necessity? I could see keeping it and giving blind people a chance to participate, or high school players a chance to face major league pitching. But pitchers batting? It's ridiculous.
Previous to the mid 80's, relief pitchers, particularly closers, were asked to pitch multiple innings. Back then, closers averaged almost 2 innings per appearance. Gossage, Fingers, Marshall.....take a look at their numbers. Marshall's last year with the Expos and first year with the Dodgers saw him pitch in 192 games, throwing 387.1 innings for 52 saves!!! Gossage used to pitch 3 and 4 innings almost as much as an inning and a third. So that "strategy" was more prevalent back then. Now? No.
Sure there are pitchers who actually like to hit and some even excel from time to time. Bumgartner and Greinke come to mind. But for the most part the others are an easy out. Plus a guy pitching in the National League can boast a better ERA than an AL pitcher because he only has to face 8 hitters out of every 9 spots. 2 or 3 easy outs a game. And let's not even talk about how ridiculous it is for a World Series to hamstring an AL lineup in a National League park. I wonder how "national league purists" will feel if the Angels and Ohtani ever make it to a World Series!!! But more importantly, why should I pay a guy millions of dollars to pitch (Ohtani aside) and risk him injuring himself at the plate or running the bases if he gets lucky enough to get on?
It's time to bite the bullet and do it. Make the DH universal and do something to save baseball a little with less boredom.
Are the 'holdouts' simply imagining pre-mid 80's baseball still exists? Or how much strategy will be taken from the game? Like those very difficult double switches? Or that bunting? Oh, that all important #8 hitter getting on base with 2 outs is exciting!!! Isn't it time to acknowledge pitching and how managers use the bullpen has made the DH in the NL lineup a necessity? I could see keeping it and giving blind people a chance to participate, or high school players a chance to face major league pitching. But pitchers batting? It's ridiculous.
Previous to the mid 80's, relief pitchers, particularly closers, were asked to pitch multiple innings. Back then, closers averaged almost 2 innings per appearance. Gossage, Fingers, Marshall.....take a look at their numbers. Marshall's last year with the Expos and first year with the Dodgers saw him pitch in 192 games, throwing 387.1 innings for 52 saves!!! Gossage used to pitch 3 and 4 innings almost as much as an inning and a third. So that "strategy" was more prevalent back then. Now? No.
Sure there are pitchers who actually like to hit and some even excel from time to time. Bumgartner and Greinke come to mind. But for the most part the others are an easy out. Plus a guy pitching in the National League can boast a better ERA than an AL pitcher because he only has to face 8 hitters out of every 9 spots. 2 or 3 easy outs a game. And let's not even talk about how ridiculous it is for a World Series to hamstring an AL lineup in a National League park. I wonder how "national league purists" will feel if the Angels and Ohtani ever make it to a World Series!!! But more importantly, why should I pay a guy millions of dollars to pitch (Ohtani aside) and risk him injuring himself at the plate or running the bases if he gets lucky enough to get on?
It's time to bite the bullet and do it. Make the DH universal and do something to save baseball a little with less boredom.
