Swing, then miss it: MLB pitchers could bat for final time

ATLANTA (AP) — Grinning the whole time, Zack Greinke slipped into his Astros warmup jacket, joked with Freddie Freeman and got a friendly pat from the Atlanta star first baseman.

Who doesn't like to see a pitcher get a hit?

Enjoy those fun moments while you can, fans. Because after Game 5 of the World Series, they could become almost extinct.

There’s a good chance Major League Baseball will bring the designated hitter to the National League next year — likely forever. That means Sunday night's game at Truist Park might mark the final time a pitcher ever appears in a big league batting order.

“I think it’s definitely going to be pretty special that this could be the last pitchers ever hitting in baseball. We’ve definitely brought it up,” Braves starter Ian Anderson said.

No more Madison Bumgarner swinging for the fences. No more Bartolo Colon flailing and losing his helmet — or shocking everyone by going deep. No more Greinke grounding a single up the middle, as he did Saturday night in Game 4.

Say goodbye to double switches. Sacrifice bunts would shrivel up and automatic intentional walks to face the pitcher would vanish, too. So would the risk of a $20 million ace pulling his hamstring while running the bases.

Plus, the little nuances that would disappear: the bat boy running out a warmup jacket to the pitcher at first base, the on-deck hitter lingering near the batter's box to give his hurler more time to walk back to the dugout

More than a century of strategy and baseball fabric, ripped away.

“Once it ever changes to no DH, then it will probably never change back, and that’s something that would sadden me,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said.

Good riddance, says Houston shortstop Carlos Correa.

“To me, that’s not real...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Swing-then-miss-it-MLB-pitchers-could-bat-for-16578542.php