A rule change in Major League Baseball’s All-Star game has once again raised the issue of the differences in use of a designated hitter in the sport’s two leagues. Although not controversial, the change should have begged an obvious question.

The rule change states that a DH is to be utilized in every All-Star Game, whether it is held in an American League or a National League ballpark. Previously, if the game were in a National League park the pitchers, as they normally do, would be forced to bat. Now that this change has been made, baseball fans should be asking themselves a simple question: Why doesn’t the NL just permanently adopt the use of a DH?

There are a multitude of reasons why this should take place, but the following are the five that are the most compelling:

1. It would help to create a more uniform game.

 Professional sport’s three other major entities, the NFL, NHL and NBA, have separate but uniform leagues that make for competitive contests when teams from different sides play each other. This is not so in professional baseball; instead, pitchers in the AL never bat while pitchers in the NL do, and almost always in the final spot in the batting order, which shows just how unimportant their at-bats really are. As a result, AL pitchers do not spend much of their practice time on hitting, and rightfully so, because that’s not what they are getting paid big money to do. This leaves them at a disadvantage when they play in a National League park during interleague play or the World Series. Making the pitcher hit in the NL is like making the quarterback kick field goals in the NFL’s NFC or the center play point guard in the NBA’s Eastern Conference. It’s just not right.

2. Let’s face it, most pitchers can’t hit.

 Since most pitchers do not spend a lot of time practicing their swing, they simply fail at the entire aspect of batting. Unless given the order to bunt, there is a good chance the pitcher witll strikeout. With such a high strikeout ratio, the batter in the eighth slot is often intentionally walked if there are two outs for the sole purpose of bringing an easy out to the plate. With such predictable outcomes, why should the pitcher have to bat? Yes, there are exceptions such as the Cubs’ Carlos Zambrano, the league’s active leader in home runs hit by a pitcher with 20, the Reds’ Micah Owings with nine career home runs, and the Diamondbacks’ Dan Haren who has 19 hits and owns a .452 average this season, but there are just not enough of them to justify giving the pitcher an opportunity at the plate.

Perhaps Charlie Finley, owner of the Oakland Athletics from 1960 to 1980, best sums up this point.

“The average fan comes to the park to see action, home runs,” Finley said. “I can’t think of anything more boring than to see a pitcher come up (to bat), when the average pitcher can’t hit my grandmother.”

3. Adding a DH to NL lineups would add home runs.

 The DH position was created for power hitters, which in turn, leads to more home runs. Several players, including current DHs Hideki Matsui, David Ortiz and Vladimir Guerrero, are not known to hit for average. Instead, they are expected to hit it deep. A well-hit ball can lead to doubles, triples, and best yet, home runs. An at-bat by a DH can change the game in a hurry, especially if there are men on base. As a result, fans of AL teams can always expect the unexpected in a league where no lead is ever safe.

4. There would be a decline in the number of players who would be denied a roster spot.

At the beginning of this season, much was made of the yet-to-be-employed Jermaine Dye. After a 27 home run, 81 RBI season in 2009, Dye was frustrated after very few teams showed interest in signing him after being let go by the White Sox to become a free agent. His offensive numbers slumped late in the season, but potential suitors were most leery about Dye’s declining defensive skills. If teams in the NL would use a DH in their lineups, Dye and others in the same situation may currently have a job as an everyday player. A DH is allowed to have zero defensive skills, as he absolutely never has to play in the field. What’s so bad about allowing aging veterans with declining defensive skills to lengthen their careers by shortening their list of job duties?

5. With so many “specialty” pitchers, such as relievers and closers, in the game today, there should also be room for “specialty” hitters, namely a DH.

Once the starting pitcher leaves the game, the pitching spot is opened up to a myriad of relief pitchers. These “specialists” include middle, long, set-up and mop-up relievers, left-handed specialists and closers. With so many specified roles to this single position, shouldn’t someone be placed in the batting lineup who also has a specific role?

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