By adopting the DH, you lose a ton of strategy involved in the game of baseball. You essentially hire a manager to mange the bullpen and thats it. I really don't understand the desire for the DH, there are 9 players and they should each hit and field. Why doesn't the NBA have a designated 3 point shooter that just runs off the court and switches with a defensive player when possession changes? Or in soccer, you could just run off players when possession changes.
DH Coming to the NL?
- Thread starter Horsehide Harry
- Start date
It does matter because the AL team would have a legit MLB hitter as the DH where the NL team uses their best bench player.
bravesfanMatt
Steve Harvey'd
yes, I don't think everyone is understanding that the AL team is always going to have an advantage over an NL team. Even in an NL park. AL teams can justify paying a hitter who really only value is hitting. NL teams can't.. So even in an NL park, the AL team will have a better pinch hitter. I don't think NL pitchers hit enough to really skew that advantage back to the NL.
A million and one what? Points that don't pertain to the discussion? It is an indisputable fact the AL is better than the NL.
Your point relates to the number of inter-league games, which isn't even a counter-point to me saying "the AL accumulates better talent over time". It would be like me saying, "It's warmer in Hawaii than in Alaska", and you saying, "I disagree because I rarely go to Hawaii".
The only part open for debate is "why is the AL better than the NL?". The obvious answer is the only real difference between the leagues, the DH. The most obvious reason that is the case is because the AL teams have 1 more MLB caliber hitter on their roster than NL teams that they can use as a DH or as a PHer in a high leverage situation. The less obvious reason is that the DH position allows teams to sign guys like Pujols, JUpton, Mac, Miggy, Oriz, Bautista, and many other older sluggers without fear of them having no place to play when they get too old to play the field.
How many times have you seen it written that so-and-so veteran slugger will likely sign with an AL team so he can DH? The NL simply doesn't have that option. Over time, the AL accumulates better hitters and can deploy them as DHes.
A ton of strategy? It doesn't exactly take a chess master to PH for the pitcher when he's near 100 pitches with the best hitter remaining on the bench. Let's keep it real when we talk about how much "strategy" PHing for the pitcher really adds to the game.
VirginiaBrave
Well-known member
It is an indisputable fact the AL is better than the NL.
And here I thought you knew the difference between opinions and facts. I guess not. Did you know the NL has won WS before? And they used to dominate the All Star game. You are fighting a losing battle with me..
A single team winning a 7 game series against another single team does not prove one entire league is better than the other, and neither is winning a single exhibition game.
Since interleague play began the AL has a .528 overall winning percentage vs the NL. That translates to an 86-76 season. The last time the NL had a winning record vs the AL was way back in 2003.
This is not a battle, this is you denying facts. You may like the NL style of play more (a perfectly fine opinion), but to say the NL isn't dominated by the AL is simply ignoring the facts staring you in the face, or a misunderstanding about how "single team" and "entire league" are not the same thing.
A .528 team (AL) can lose a series to a .472 team (NL). It happens all the time, but the .528 team is still better.
DontStopTheChop
High School Draftee
+1 Enscheff
I don't post much and I realize Enscheff can be a real hassle to converse with but this is exactly how you should intrepret it. It goes way beyond the in-game interleague play. Do people realize how valuable Matt Kemp becomes if the DH comes to the NL? David Ortiz's value decreases dramatically if he is forced to play the field. I understand the argument that pitchers are players too and therefore should bat. I totally agree. I wish we could just do away with it it both leagues. But, I am afraid it is inevitable that the NL gets the DH.
But, let's not deny the fact that players who are in twilight of their careers can go to the AL as a DH and still perform at a high level. Not the case if they stay in the NL. Often times players leave and sign a contract with an AL Team because their careers may be extended due to the DH.
I don't post much and I realize Enscheff can be a real hassle to converse with but this is exactly how you should intrepret it. It goes way beyond the in-game interleague play. Do people realize how valuable Matt Kemp becomes if the DH comes to the NL? David Ortiz's value decreases dramatically if he is forced to play the field. I understand the argument that pitchers are players too and therefore should bat. I totally agree. I wish we could just do away with it it both leagues. But, I am afraid it is inevitable that the NL gets the DH.
But, let's not deny the fact that players who are in twilight of their careers can go to the AL as a DH and still perform at a high level. Not the case if they stay in the NL. Often times players leave and sign a contract with an AL Team because their careers may be extended due to the DH.
Chipper performed pretty well at 40.
And he probably could have served as a DH for another couple years if the NL had it.
Again, 1 single player does not prove anything. Nor does a 7 game series between the best 2 teams in each league.
It's like me saying Alabama is a more obese state than Colorado, and then you saying, "well my neighbor is really fit". Or the other guy saying, "well the hottest chicks in Alabama are sometimes hotter than the hottest chicks in Colorado". Both are probably true, but it doesn't change the fact that the South is full of fat asses compared to the Western US.
VirginiaBrave
Well-known member
A .528 team (AL) can lose a series to a .472 team (NL). It happens all the time, but the .528 team is still better.
The ring is everything.
The ring is everything.
Chipper averaged right at 120 games played per season over his last 8 seasons. I think it's safe to say he would have managed many more games than that if he had been able to DH a portion of the time (or all the time in his last few seasons).
You appear to be the only person that doesn't realize a couple short series do not accurately reflect which team is truly the best. Also the only one that doesn't realize that a single series between two teams is not indicative of league wide trends.
Congrats?
I don't care who is better (probably just depends on which team matches up with another). AL has the bats for sure because of the DH. I like the NL's style of play. I think if you are in the game as a pitcher...you should have to bat. Players should retire if they can't play their position anymore. My two cents. BTW, if a NL team wins the World Series, that kinda means the NL had the best team that year (or vice versa). All those years the Bulls won the Championship, there were overall better teams in the west than the east....I only remember the Bulls. They won so the east was the best...was it even though the west may have had a better win percentage?...yes rings count x2.
So because the Bulls won the title that means their conference was the best conference? Am I following your logic correctly?
VirginiaBrave
Well-known member
Well I hate to burst your bubble but the only people that care the Atlanta Braves were the best team in baseball in '96 and '97 are members of Braves nation. All the rest of the world cares about is that the Yankees and Marlins have rings so once again your stats and argument for that matter mean very little.
Bunting. Double switches. In the AL,you dont worry about "do I try to get the pitcher one more inning before he is due to hit?"
AL managers can sleep thru the majority of the game. They arent needed, just whether to change pitchers or not.
Imagine a 2010 season where Chipper is the DH and doesn't end his season playing 3rd? You can argue it both ways with him as he did still play 3B at an acceptable and sometimes good level late in his career. But the daily grind also put him at less games played per year. As a fulltime DH he likely plays close to a full season. And I would argue his value would be higher as a DH playing 145+ games even with the DH penalty.
What's it been? About 43 years since the AL adopted the DH? No reason to think that there's any more support for it now than ever before in the NL. If anything, Selig would have been one to push for it with his "change for the sake of change" approach as commissioner.
chop2chip
Well-known member
To be fair, those are some of the most boring parts of baseball.