From Daily Sports Column (Japanese) / デイリースポーツオンラインの連載コラムから
The Tigers’ woes continue in large part due to their lack of run support for the excellent pitching staff they have fielded this year. After their twenty-one-game streak of allowing 3 runs or fewer came to an end on May 20, they have had two games of giving up 6 runs, but outside of that, are back to giving up 3 or less.
The biggest highlight of this impressive stretch is Junya Nishi’s unbelievable performance against the Yakult Swallows on May 18. Not only did he throw a complete-game against an outstanding lineup, but he also drilled a ball into the stands and looked like a boss flipping his bat and rounding the bases. What a TREAT to watch that kid doing both things so well! Two-way players, anyone?
And yet with interleague now in full swing, we have gotten to see what games would be like in the CL if the designated hitter were employed. On one hand, some think that the DH is not pure baseball and that the old way is best. But is it, really? There is only one professional league in the world that does not use the DH: the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. So, should the league stand its ground and make pitchers stand in the batter’s box? Or should it go with the flow and let the pitchers off the proverbial hook?
Here are some of the different ideas that are out there, plus quotes from current and former Hanshin Tigers who back them.
- Keep things the same! Let the pitchers hit in one of the two leagues, otherwise what is the point of dividing into two leagues?
Craig Brazell (Seibu Lions 2008, Tigers 2009-12, Chiba Lotte Marines 2013-14): “I like the old game (no DH in the CL/National League). People need to stop messing with it. The DH is fine for one division, not for both. If someone is good enough to do both (hit and pitch), the DH won’t stop them.”
- Bring on the DH! It makes for better baseball!
Justin Bour (Tigers 2020): “It takes a certain person to be able to be successful DHing. I also feel with how good pitchers have gotten in recent years, facing a pitcher (at the plate) is basically an automatic out.”
Kyle Keller (Tigers): “It makes offenses better, which baseball fans seem to like.”
Mel Rojas Jr (Tigers): “Having a DH makes the league better. I hope next season they use DH in the CL.”
Joe Gunkel (Tigers): “Very pro-DH.”
- Bring on the DH! It allows pitchers to focus on their craft more!
Aaron Wilkerson (Tigers): “It was kind of great because I didn’t have to hit. The stress of hitting was off of me, so focusing only on pitching is a great thing.” (from hero interview, May 27)
Jerry Sands (Tigers 2020-21): “I think if you ask pitchers if they want to pitch and hit on a summer day at Jingu, they’d say, ‘[Let me] stay in front of the [dugout] fan [between innings] and just pitch.’ [The heat] takes a toll.”
- But won’t this prevent two-way talents like Shohei Ohtani from emerging?
Matt Murton (Tigers 2010-15): “One of the things that the universal DH does do is allow for an additional hitter that doesn’t need to play the field, obviously, so while a young pitcher that can hit could be hampered by the rule (as it takes away natural ABs each start), it also provides more opportunity on non-pitching days to get in the lineup without extending him defensively. Shohei Ohtani himself played on a team with a DH as he was coming up in Japan and now again in Anaheim. So while it may limit some initial at bats and opportunities to see what a kid has at the plate, once an organization determines that they think that individual hits enough to warrant a look, there are four more at-bats available every game that wouldn’t be there otherwise.”
Sands: “By the time a player gets to the NPB, you have an idea if they are a potential Ohtani. If they have that talent, then they need to get more at-bats. That’s why I think it’s great that the MLB just put that rule in that Ohtani can switch to DH after he pitches.”
And what does T-Ray think? Do you really care? Doesn’t matter, I’m going to tell you anyways! I used to be adamantly against the DH because it took so much strategy out of the game. However, as I have come to understand and love baseball, I have discovered that managers already have a plethora of decisions to make during the game. This does not make it any less of a chess match! I am now in the camp of most of the players above. Here’s what I propose:
Let (require?) all players, whether position or pitcher, stand at the dish and hit the ball through high school. If by that point, it seems a pitcher could be a two-way player, coaches and scouts need to be open to the possibility, too. He/she would need to realize that it requires at least two times the work, practice, discipline and intelligence, but that it is not an impossibility. Look at Ohtani! Heck, look what Akira Neo (Chunichi Dragons) has been doing lately (position player pitching with authority)! Or even Junya Nishi, about whom Sands said, “Pretty impressive. But I mean, one game or performance vs. the other 5-6 bad hitting pitchers on each team throughout the week doesn’t justify keeping [pitchers] in [the batter’s box].”
OK, back to my stance. The big question I have to ask is this. How much time do position players spend working on their hitting skills? Practicing their swing? Taking batting practice? Watching video? Scouting other teams’ pitchers? Obsessing over everything related to getting on base? Despite ALL that effort, they might get a hit 3 out of 10 times they are at the plate. OK, now go back to those same questions, and answer them for pitchers. The answer for most of them will be “almost none at all.” Why do we expect pitchers to stand at the plate and try to contribute offensively when they hardly practice (or think about) any of the skills required to do so? Do they not have enough to think about on the mound? Is it not harder these days to strike guys out and prevent runs than it ever has been before? Do they not spend hours watching video, reading scouting reports, and going over a game plan from the mound? Do they need to think about how to advance runners or put the ball into play with a bat in their hands?
I cannot count the number of times I have heard Central League fans say, “The pitcher’s job in this situation (at the plate) is to strike out. If he gets on base, then he has to stand there in the heat and worry about trying to score while also thinking about the next inning. Just strike out and get back to the dugout.” The other night, I heard a commentator (a Tigers legend, no less) say the following when the leadoff #6 hitter got on base for the Tigers. “The #7 guy should bunt and they should just accept the strong possibility of a zero this inning. If he grounds into a double play then they probably have to start the next inning with the pitcher at the plate. If he bunts, the pitcher can be the third out of this inning.” He’s not wrong, but is that the kind of baseball we want to watch?
Now obviously, my opinion and selfish reasons for wanting the DH are secondary to the fact that if you look at the quotes from players above, almost all of them unequivocally want the DH, too! So what are we waiting for, Central League? Join the rest of the world and bring on the designated hitter!