What is the more intense moment: a rally killed by a pitcher making an easy out, or a pitcher bucking the odds and getting a game-winning hit?
With the National League adopting the designated hitter, fans won’t have to debate those moments, or even witness them.
Here are highlights of how some pitchers – and I’m sure I’ve overlooked a few or more — were good hitters, and some who weren’t.
(Every fan knows Babe Ruth started out as a pitcher who could hit, and there’s been enough written about Shohei Ohtani, so we’ll save them for later.)
I believe the cardinal sin for a pitcher is to walk an opposing pitcher. The second sin is allowing a pitcher to hit a home run. With that criterion, there are plenty of second sins.
