i think it is about time the National League install the DH. dont u think so?

Answer 1

I agree pitchers are boring to watch hit and the leagues should have the same rules. Also it will allow guys who are monsters at the plate but not very mobile in the field to stay in the game. Guys like Bonds, Frank Thomas, who re great hitters would be able to play well into thier 40's and still be affective.

Answer 2

The DH should be banned in all of baseball anywhere in the world. If you're in MLB, you should be fit enough to play the whole game, offensively and defensively. Just because you are big (and/or fat) like Thome, Ortiz, Thomas, Giambi, does not mean you should get to only bat. Have the guts to go out and actually play a whole game. Yes, some of the current DH batters have played a field position, and some don't cause they're hurt. But injuries and low performances are all part of the game. Live with it and work your way out of those funks. That's how you become a great all around player. Not only that, but pitchers like Clemens and Martinez (when he was still with Boston) would definitely think twice about beaning a batter because they know that the opposing team can and will retaliate against them, not just their teammates. It is so easy for the AL to load up their lineups with big hitters and not worry about double switches like the NL. There is more strategy and thinking involved in the NL without the DH. The DH may make the game marginally more exciting, but it also takes away from the game of baseball itself.

Answer 3

No that is dumb the DH is the spot for the good hitter that is too lazy to field. I think the NL has it right. The AL should drop the DH rule. The DH imo takes some stratige out of the game. NL should stay the same and the AL should go to the NL way.

Answer 4

No, I don't think so. It's just my own opinion, but that's what it is.

I love to watch the National League game, the chess match of managers spinning their mental wheels, trying to figure out when to bunt, when to pinch-hit, when to double-switch. Bobby Cox has a decade-long track record of making the right moves. Willie Randolph gives his bench a major role and plays his hunches. Tony La Russa experiments with slotting his pitcher eighth in the order at times. All have been successful with their varied styles.

Dealing with the pitcher's spot in the order is a challenge that comes with the game. 7th inning, pitcher's throwing a gem, but it's a one-run game and his turn to bat. Uh-oh, what now? It keeps everyone guessing, and it leads to the kinds of second-guessing and debates that have made baseball such a great social phenomenon for over a century.

The non-use of the designated hitter encourages (and even ensures) the need for all 25 players on the roster. It necessitates the occasional pinch hitter, pinch runner, or double-switch. It makes every player play both sides of the ball, and it keeps the bench guys in the game.

It's rare to have a guy like Mike Hampton come along. But when you have a guy like him in the lineup, it adds an extra bit of interest, and skills like that help when finding players to put on one's team. Arizona's Micah Owings came up and presented everyone with quite a dilemma; he was a Major-League quality pitcher, but he could also handle a bat incredibly well. What to do? They kept him as a pitcher, and he's had some huge games with his bat AND his arm. Now, manager Bob Melvin is talking about potentially using him in the field at times when he's not pitching, or rotating him into the field to let a specialist face a tough left-handed hitter, then bringing Owings back in to pitch to the next guy.

Again, these are rare situations, but they provide an extra wrinkle of interest to the game. The Mets won quite a few games early this year largely because of pitchers who "helped their own causes." Instead of implementing the DH, maybe more pitchers should take batting practice more seriously. Sure, it's a little more work, but I think we pay them well enough to do that, don't we? A good hitting pitcher adds that little extra advantage to the lineup.

I know that the DH is a way for players to extend their careers, but why do they have to be pampered by this rule? Sure, it's great to see some of our long-time favorites getting second chances as DH's, but I'd also like to see the up-and-coming kid with a good bat and a good glove getting his chance as well. Too bad the kid gets pushed out by the guy who has an above-average bat, even with no glove, because he doesn't have to be able to use it. He is the DH. If the veteran wants to stick around, he should keep his skills honed better, the way Julio Franco did for quite a few years. Too bad the Players Union will never go for that.

Above all, I'm just a fan of the way the NL game is played. I just like it, it's my opinion, and we're all entitled to one of those. It's why we have debate, and I'm a fan of that as well.

Answer 5

I don't really care if the NL gets the DH, just as long as they stop complaining about it. They always say that it is unfair how pitchers don't hit, and a guy gets to be in the lineup just to hit. Pitchers are a wasted at bat, and none of them have productive numbers beyond that of a 7-8 slot batter, so why would they hit. The DH rule adds alot of excitment to the game, and without it, then some of the best wouldn't be around today.

Answer 6

No, because it adds some variety to the game and then all the little league teams and high school teams might have to change to having a DH.

Answer 7

No, but not because I'm anti DH. I actually like that the two leagues have things that make them unique to each other. I like that when they meet one has to adapt to the other's style. I like the fact that I'm watching a totally different game when I watch and Angels game or a Dodgers game.

Answer 8

NO NO NO. The NL plays the way it is supposed to be played. The AL should get rid of the DH.

Answer 9

There is no reason I can think of to implement the DH in the NL. Baseball is doing just fine the way it is and slight differences between the two leagues gives us all something to talk about.

Answer 10

No, let's leave the DH to the AL

Answer 11

I think its good to have the variety of having different rules for the different leagues. This makes interleague games much more interesting also.
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