MLB Discards Tradition by Implementing the Ohtani Rule

Rewriting the rule book for one player is absurd.

But that’s essentially what Major League Baseball has done, deciding that starting this season the starting pitcher can also serve as the designated hitter even after his pitching duties end.

Who does this new rule, which was announced in late March, benefit?

One player ― Shohei Ohtani.

The Ohtani Rule Debate
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In 2022, Los Angeles Angels manager Joe Maddon will have fewer lineup decisions to make in games when Ohtani is the starter.

Instead, Maddon will have the option of keeping Ohtani’s bat in the lineup even if the Iwate Prefecture native is removed from the game as a pitcher.

In previous years, Ohtani would need to be replaced by another pitcher and shifted to another defensive position (in his case, the outfield, where he played 8⅓ innings in 2021) in order for him to be permitted to bat. Maddon has also opted to not use a DH on days when Ohtani was the starting pitcher enabling him to bat for himself.

The National League, established in 1876, has never had designated hitters. The American League, formed in 1901, instituted the DH in 1973. 

This year, both leagues will have the DH for the first time.

Even so, enabling a pitcher to also serve as the DH clashes with baseball tradition.

There are only nine positions on a baseball diamond, nine batters listed on a lineup card. Each spot represents potential decisions a manager must make.

Due to the new rule, Ohtani “will be the biggest and probably the only beneficiary, receiving an extra one or two plate appearances practically every time he starts,” ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez wrote.

So why did MLB’s owners and the MLB Players’ Association agree to implement this new rule for the entirety of their new collective bargaining agreement until 2026?

Presumably, because of the buzz coming out of having Ohtani serve as the leadoff batter and the AL’s starting pitcher at the 2021 All-Star Game in Denver. 

It was a one-time exception to lineup regulations put in place for the Midsummer Classic, and the gimmick will wear off.

Nearly all MLB pitchers are terrible hitters.

Adjusting the rule book for one player, even somebody who is universally admired, defies logic.

If a case study or tangible evidence indicated that the Ohtani rule would be helpful to, say, half of MLB’s 30 clubs on a regular basis, it would make sense to implement it.

But nothing could be further from the truth.

Expect only Ohtani to be utilized as a starting pitcher and designated hitter in the same game.

Do you have thoughts on the new rule? Join the debate in our comments section [on SportsLook at this link here] [below].

Author: Ed Odeven

Follow Ed on JAPAN Forward's [Japan Sports Notebook] here on Sundays, in [Odds and Evens] here during the week, and Twitter ＠ed_odeven.