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Designated hitter

Edgar Martínez, who spent most of his career as the full-time designated hitter for the Seattle Mariners, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019.[1]

The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. Unlike other players in a team's lineup, they generally only play as an offensive player and usually do not play defense as a fielder or a pitcher during a game. Due to their specialized offensive-only role, the designated hitter is generally expected to produce above average offensive stats and production compared to other players who play defense.[2]

In Major League Baseball, the position is authorized by Rule 5.11 of the Official Baseball Rules.[3] It was adopted by the American League in 1973 and by the National League in 2022, making it universal in MLB.[4] Within that time frame, nearly all amateur, collegiate, and professional leagues worldwide have adopted the designated hitter or some variant,[5] except for Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League.[6]

  1. ^ Johns, Greg (January 22, 2019). "Edgar elected into HOF in final year of eligibility". MLB.com. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  2. ^ "Designated Hitter | Glossary". MLB.com. Retrieved October 6, 2024.
  3. ^ "Official Baseball Rules 2015 edition" (PDF). December 10, 2014. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference SI Wulf was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Alexander, Charles C. (1991). Our Game: An American Baseball History. Macmillan. p. 290. ISBN 9780805015942.
  6. ^ Ringolsby, Tracy (January 20, 2016). "Tide is turning toward a universal DH". Major League Baseball. Retrieved April 22, 2018.

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