How can the DH rule be abolished?

[WindRavenX]

I can't stand the fucking DH rule- I hate it more than I can describe. I'm a low-scoring, pitching duel kinda chick myself, so I naturally am in the abolish the DH crowd. However, how can it be possible for it to be abolished? Is it something that Bud Selig can do? Is it something that can be voted on?
I seriously want the DH to be abolished, and I think many fans agree with this.
(and if you disagree, please tell me why you like the DH rule)

[CubsFan1982]

1. I believe it's up to a vote of the owners and players' union.

Which means, never gonna happen. :(

[WindRavenX]

2. shit

I really can't tell you how much I hate that rule...and free-agency...

[KitchenWitch]

3. I agree

I am a total baseball purist. I love small ball and pitcher's duels. My team is an AL team so I have to contend with the DH but man, it would be cool to see pitchers come up to bat!

[banjosareunderrated]

4. Workable scenario?

AL fans stop buying tickets out of protest (way long shot).

NL teams dominate Series for, at least, a decade (kindofa long shot).

World Series is held earlier in the year to get rid of NFL-viewer competition, making the Series must-see for sport fans (abomination).

We place a curse on Charles Finley's grave (easily done, but results unknown).

AL pitchers allowed to bean opposing team's pitcher while said opposer is in the dugout (entertaining and fair but cruel).

STOP SUPPORTING THE YANKEES. I know this one hurts, but if all of you Hatfields monetarily hurt the monolith that is Selig's cashcow, and you convinced your McCoy brethren to quit supporting the Botox, everything would fall into place. Believe me you, Jeter and Mattingly and Jackson hate the f'ing DH. So do Clemens and Schilling and Cone. And Zimmer and Dave Stewart.

However, AL teams draw a bunch of frickin' money from halfans who like 12-9 games. Whaddya gonna do?

[Caution]

5. Regarding the so-called "beaning" issue and the DH

This is now and always has been a red-herring issue. Statistically there is little to no difference between the amount of hit batsmen in either league, additionally, most of us who pay very close attention to baseball can attribute the huge increase in offense that is occurring to a lack of the ability to pitch inside at all in either league. Pitching inside is what allows pitchers to dominate batters, the AL is notoriously offense heavy.

Whether or not the DH is good for baseball is a completely different issue but there is no evidence that the DH leads to an increase in HBP. In fact, in 2004, of the top 10 teams in HBP, 5 of them were national league teams.

In the NL pitchers hit 892 batters, in the AL 904, a difference of 12.

These numbers are quite consistent over the years and there have been a few years when the NL had more HBP.

[Princess Turandot]

6. I always had the impression that most HBPs..

have to do with individual pitchers' style & control more than full-scale retaliation, altho the latter obviously does occur. Don't certain pitchers hit more batters than others?

[WindRavenX]

7. yes

And they keep DOING IT because they NEVER have to get in the batter's box.
Clemens and Pedro were and are headhunters and NEVER had to face the music.

[Caution]

8. blatantly untrue

Neither clemens nor martinez are or ever were "headhunters." Take a look at the numbers and you'll see that while both of them have hit more batsmen than their peers it is not by an extraordinary amount nordid they hit batters in the head with any frequency at all (to my knowledge clemens has done it once in a 20 year career and martinez has *never* hit a batter in the head.

Your characterization of these guys as headhunters is flat wrong and the numbers show it (as does the fact that after having thrown 65023 Roger Clemens has hit exactly ONE batter in the head). Contrary to him being a "headhunter" I would say this shows some pretty remarkable ability and restraint. Last season he hit 6 yes 6 batters in the NL. In the AL the season before? 5. Yeh he really was afraid to pitch differently in the NL eh?

Pedro Martinez? 35775 pitches. No batters hit in the head. Over the course of his career he hit as many batters in the NL as in the AL.

They both pitch inside which is the only way to be a truly successful pitcher. All of the greats did this from Koufax to gibson to clemens to martinez. The only reason their numbers even appear inflated is because of the media jumping on it and calling them headhunters in order to demonize them. Notice that both of these pitchers were red sox pitchers and that the bulk tfo the headhunter references come from the new york post (not exactly a paper known for writing anything inflammatory or anything).

The idea that they are intentionally hitting batters is absurd. Every pitcher in the league retaliates when an opposing pitcher has intentionally hit a batter. 90% of these instances occur by hitting somone in the thigh which is known to cause little to no physical damage beyond a bruise.

Before making a statement about someone as a criminal (which someone who intentionally throws a hard object at 90MPH at someone's head obviously is) get your facts straight. I can see from your signature that you are a Jeter fan. I imagine that you blame Martinez for hitting Jeter in the hand. Take a close look at Jeter's batting stance and where he positions himself in the batter's box and then look at how many times per season jeter gets hit. He regularly is in the top category for hit batsmen. He crowds the plate (and there is nothing wrong with this, it gives him an edge over pitchers who are afraid to pitch inside for fear of being labeled a "headhunter"). Last season he was 10th in all of MLB having been hit 14 times. In fact Derek Jeter has been hit by pitches 92 times after having seen 23416. This means that Jeter gets hit more frequently then either Clemens or Martinez hit batters. Since Clemens and Martinez are "headhunters" I guess this makes Derek Jeter a batter who intentionally jumps in front of pitches (which as you know is cheating).

Look, I have all the respect in the world for Jeter, I'm just pointing out that just because the media and morons like David Kay jump all over the pitchers when they hit someone doesn't make the characterization true. You may not liek the DH rule but the idea that pitchers in the AL feel they can intentionally hit batters or pitch inside moreso than NL pitchers because there is no fear of retaliation is wrong and the numbers prove it. Just because it "seems" logical doesn't make it true. If you don't liek the DH that's fine but dislike it for reasons that make sense Good reasons not to like the DH:

1.) It causes games to be longer
2.) It inflates hitting statistics in the AL over the NL creating a problem when evaluating team talent
3.) it allows for one dimensional athletes (pitchers who can't hit, hitters who can't field)
4.) It removes many elements of strategy from the game (double switch, almost all bunting)
5.) It inflates pitching statistics in teh NL (the converse of reason 2)
6.) It gives the AL a huge advantage when the have home field advantage in the World Series

But the notion that it allows pitchers to intentionally hit batters is simply wrong.