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Corey McSweeney discusses the DH rule: To be or not to be?

MLB, Please Come Into the 21st Century

by Corey McSweeney (Analyst)

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219 reads

Editorial

June 19, 2008

MLB, Rule Changes, Editorial

I love baseball. I Love everything about it: the homeruns, the huge strikeouts, going to the game and eating a hot dog, all of it. However, the game I love needs to make a change.

Yes, DH rule, I am talking about you. 

And please trust me, this has nothing to do with Hank "the Tank" Steinbrenner blowing steam over Chien-Ming Wang's inability to run around the bases. That was a freak injury and had nothing to do with being a DH. Maybe Wang is allergic to running.

My reason for both leagues' need to adapt the rule is this: When is it acceptable for a pro league to have different rules in its two conferences? Seriously, where have you ever seen that before other than in baseball?

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I understand the two leagues have traditionally been separate entities, but you are now together, part of the same league. It's time to have the same rules all the way through. 

Now, why is the DH better than having the pitcher hit? Because the game has evolved from playing as a youngster and playing as a professional, and how specialized the game has become.

When you're in little league, even getting into high school, most likely the pitcher is one of the best hitters on the team, if not the best. But, once you get into college, or even if you're good enough in high school and go pro right away, your coach will want you to pick, or have already chosen for you.

Pitching is a whole other being than the rest of the team. The amount of time it takes to perfect your craft as a pitcher makes it nearly impossible for pitchers to get BP. Sometimes pitchers are even forbid to hit, as Bartolo Colon should be right now.

Watching the pitcher hit is hard to watch. It has become a joke and an easy out. Where's the strategy in that? The game needs to adapt to how pitching works in the pros. There's no getting around it. 

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About the Author Corey McSweeney (analyst)

  • 52 articles written
  • 103 comments posted
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