To counter that argument, aren't players paid good money to field as well as hit? Your punter/kicker analogy, has no relevance to the DH argument. A better analogy would be do you want a designated free throw shooter in the NBA?
MLBPA would have to approve getting rid of DH and there is probably no way that happens. I agree, at some point both leagues are going to have DH.
Next year will mark the 40th anniversary of the DH. The two leagues have been different for a long time. Why do you think both leagues are going to adopt it?
Because we went 70 years without one? It will happen eventually. DH isn't going away, and the day will come when they say the rules need to be the same. Probably several years away.
Yep. Brewers should have been just because they are also in the NL central, and have been in the AL longer than the NL.
At the end of the day all I care about is the Astros becoming relevant again. Would I have liked that in the NL, sure. But screw it, I'd rather have a baseball team in the AL then none at all. I don't buy the division will be harder. They're pretty comparable imo. And the DH....meh. I think some of ya'll are getting a little too bent out of shape over it. It has it's pros and cons, but it's still baseball.
I'm sure in the 70s and 80s nobody thought we'd ever see interleague play. With interleague games happening every day the next season, at some point they are going to decide it needs to be the same for everyone.
Move to the AL was officially the end for me and the Astros. I haven't watched a single game of baseball all year, and I feel fine. And I used to be an insanely die-hard baseball fan. During summer in college, I got a job selling beer in St. Louis at old Bush stadium just so that I could get into all the games for free. I once drove all night from St. Louis to Chicago to catch an Astros-Cubs double header at Wrigley. Perhaps at some point, I will get back into baseball, but as long as the Astros remain in the AL I will actively oppose them. I think if I come back, it'll be as a Cards fan. As I said, I worked their games, and it will give me a chance to cheer against POS Bud Selig's team. Seriously, now that I'm "on the outside" so to speak, baseball is clearly the most ****ed up sports league in the USA. Despite its reputation as a bunch of cheapskates and as the "No Fun League", the NFL has really gotten it right with the hard salary cap and all the parity that it has generated. Just imagine the difference in outlook over the past 30 years for a Pittsburgh Pirates fan and a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. MLB, and the AL in particular is basically a couple of teams of Globetrotters and a whole bunch more Washington Generals. For all the crap that the NBA gets about being a handful of super-teams, there is nobody even close to having the advantages that the Yankeees have.
It is indeed a problem when every time someone tries to lend historical context to a discussion others start chirping, "stuck in the past!" without even taking time to grasp the point. If the only frame of reference you're willing to acknowledge is the current state of affairs or what only a certain age bracket thinks, your opinion is not going to be well-informed. The point was, if pitchers could bat and still pitch (on less rest and for longer outings, no less) then that is not an effective argument for the DH, ridiculously high salaries notwithstanding.
And the whole, "the game is too slow!" nonsense is built on bad assumptions. Even when the NFL and NBA were less formidable competitors for MLB's market share, the whole nation wasn't entirely consumed with baseball. Today, not only are other leagues far more available for the would-be viewer, but the Internet and like two billion cable and satellite television stations compete for time. Ultimately, someone either enjoys baseball or he doesn't, and the DH has had little effect on that--as it alienates as many as it attracts. Screwing with the rules of a beautiful game because some kids are bored, to me, is stupid.
I hated that this was forced on the Astros but after getting past that I'm okay with it. Astros/Rangers games when they mean something should be awesome. I look forward to more trips down there to visit family/friends. It will take years to develop new rivals but it will happen. If the Astros are in tight division race in September I don't think people will care what league they are in.
They don't kick off and help set the tone for drives? They don't participate in tackles on kick-offs (or didn't you watch Rackers and Hartman last year)? They don't get blocked? They don't occasionally run fakes where they throw or catch or run?
All that being said, the three best records in baseball this year belong to: Washington Cincinnati Texas
I guess my point is, why won't they revert to no DH in X years? Apparently the main sticking point with the players is it removes guys like Ortiz from the game. The owners could counter with a 26th roster spot if they ever get down to serious negotiations.
The Pirates problems over the past decade or so has more to do with the ownership. Tampa Bay has put out competitive teams over the past 5 years despite having trouble even getting people in the stadium, and letting Carl Crawford leave wasn't the end of the world. Cardinals aren't a big market team. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5484947
An extra roster spot isn't necessarily worth giving up the DH even. Keep in mind that bench players usually make around the minimum, while DHs can get paid a ton. I don't like it, but it is what it is.
Like I said, the only kind of rivalry I ever wanted between the Rangers and Astros is a World Series one. One that mattered. Regular Season and Pre-World Series don't mean jack to me when it comes to the Rangers. I'll come out and say I don't watch baseball, I just follow if the Astros win or not (so i'm pretty much done with them now, since they're going out on a whimper) so I don't know what the hell a DH is or does. Goodbye Astros, and thanks MLB and Bud Selig for ****ing Houston over.
