Baseball Designated Hitter Rules (2024)

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Designated hitters play a valuable role in the day-to-day success of professional baseball teams, despite not taking the field defensively at all.The designated hitter position offers a valuable spot in the lineup that affords teams flexibility in their hitters, and the chance to rest players as they see fit. That being said, there are some important rules that come into play when it comes to the DH. Read on to learn about the rules surrounding designated hitters in Major League Baseball, and how these rules affect gameplay.

• What Is a DH in Baseball?
• Which League Uses a Designated Hitter?
• MLB Designated Hitter Rule Changes
• Pinch-Hitter and Pinch-Runner
• History of the Designated Hitter Rules
• DH Rule in League Play
• Shohei Ohtani Rule
• FAQ

What Is a DH in Baseball?

A designated hitter (“DH”) is a player who hits in place of the pitcher. These players are a part of the lineup throughout the game, just as any player that takes the field defensively is. However, the designated hitter does not take the field during those halves of each inning where their team is on defense. At these times, the player simply waits in the dugout because the pitcher is still active in the team’s defense.A player who enters the lineup in place of the designated hitter then becomes the designated hitter for the rest of the game.

If the designated hitter is called to serve a defensive position during the game, they retain their spot in the batting order but lose the status of DH.The pitcher is then placed in the lineup slot that was previously occupied by the defensive player whom the DH replaced in the field. In addition to this, the team cannot then use another designated hitter for the remainder of the game.

A team must select their designated hitter before the game begins, and if the team does not select a designated hitter, they are not permitted to use a designated hitter for the entire game. If the pitcher plays another defensive position, the team is no longer allowed to use a designated hitter. The lineup cards are given to the umpire in chief at the start of the game.

Which League Uses a Designated Hitter?

As of 2022, the designated hitter position is used in both the National League and American League. Before the 2022 season, the designated hitter position was only used in the American League (or “AL”) of the MLB, and was not active within the National League (or “NL”).

Many teams in the American League elected to have a designated hitter because the pitcher typically had poor batting averages compared to the rest of the team. This was mostly due to lack of practice, as pitchers usually practice throwing rather than batting. A designated hitter is usually a power-hitter with poor defensive skills, and the position often goes to older players, who still get a chance to shine behind home plate.

MLB Designated Hitter Rule Changes

At the start of the 2022 season, the MLB altered its rules to implement a universal designated hitter across the entirety of the league, both in the AL and NL.This means that all teams now must have a designated hitter in the batting order to replace their main pitcher. However, the new rules do still permit pitchers to hit in both leagues, though in order to do so, they must have a special designation as a DH in addition to their status as a pitcher.This designation will allow them to hit after being removed from the game as a pitcher.

Pinch-Hitter and Pinch-Runner

If a pinch-hitter or pinch-runner enters the batting lineup in place of a designated hitter, the new player is considered to be the designated hitter for the rest of the game.Furthermore, if a pinch-hitter bats for any other player and then becomes the active pitcher, the team is not permitted to use a designated hitter.

History of the Designated Hitter Rules

The first talk of creating a designated hitter position was back in 1906, but in 1928, the President of the National League immediately rejected the idea.On January 11th, 1973, there was a meeting amongst the American League’s 24 owners on the subject of adding a 10th man to the lineup by means of a designated hitter. The vote passed, as owners thought utilizing more power-hitters by means of a designated hitter would bring in more fans who wanted additional action in the game.

In a joint meeting on the same day, between National League and American League owners, a debate was had about whether to allow the American League a designated hitter position or not. The National League was very opposed to the idea, as they were the dominating league of the MLB at the time.However, the American League ultimately won out, and was granted the right to institute a designated hitter position.

In the decades following that meeting, fans and various owners alike urged the MLB to make the designated hitter position universal, but for many years, it was still only an active rule in the American League. That all changed in 2022, when the MLB finally implemented a universal designated hitter rule across both leagues.

DH Rule in League Play

Prior to the 2022 season, either league could adapt to use the designated hitter rule if they wanted to, but only the AL made use of it. In these cases, when the postseason arrived, it became possible for two teams representing the two leagues to have different policies on DHs during the World Series or exhibition games.When this occurred, the decision to use the designated hitter rule was based on the home team’s policy in each respective game. In All-Star games, both teams had to agree to use designated hitters for it to be allowed.

As of 2022, and the implementation of the universal DH rule, these postseason policy conflicts no longer exist in the MLB.

Shohei Ohtani Rule

In 2022, Major League Baseball added a new rule concerning the link between DH’s and pitchers that allowed a team to start the game with no DH but then keep their pitcher in as a DH later in the game.This rule is commonly tabbed the “Shohei Ohtani Rule,” as the rule was largely put into place on account of two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani.

This rule allows teams with a particularly good hitting pitcher on the mound to sub in a new pitcher while still keeping their previous pitcher’s bat in the lineup as a designated hitter. In order to capitalize on this rule, however, the team in question must start the game without a DH.To do this, managers have to list the pitcher twice on the lineup card (once as a pitcher, and once as a designated hitter) as if they were two separate players.

FAQ

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