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It looks like the Universal DH is coming - A Hunt and Peck

Negotiations between MLB and MLBPA have mentioned a Universal DH.

St. Louis Cardinals v Kansas City Royals Photo by John Williamson/MLB Photos via Getty Images

Most of us saw this coming whether it be this year or in the near future: the Universal DH. In the past the designated hitter was only implemented in the American League. As the years went on there were many calls for the National League to adopt this rule. The idea is to keep pitchers out of the batter’s box to increase offensive production and decrease the chances pitchers are injured [outside of pitching]. Some people argue it is not within the spirit of the game — there are nine players and all must bat for themselves, leading to big managerial decisions later on in the game. Others say it makes the game more interesting. The battle ensued.

After the pandemic shut down Spring Training in March of 2020 Major League Baseball was forced to adopt rule changes to keep the game safe — to contain the spread of the virus, but also to keep the players healthy while they attempted to squeeze as many games as possible into about half a season’s worth of time. Thus, the Universal DH — the Designated Hitter in both the American League and National League — was implemented.

The arguments for and against the DH in the National League had waged for years, but with the pandemic forcing baseball’s hand and a new CBA due in 2022, the time might be right for the inevitable to happen. According to Commissioner Rob Manfred in his address to the media during the negotiations between MLB and the Player’s Association the Universal DH seems to be something the two sides agree on. Here is more news on that, plus a few other details from the negotiations:

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