SI's Jon Weisman lists the traditions and practices he believes baseball should keep (pitchers batting in the NL; the wild card), and which he believes should go (interleague play; the bar against trading draft picks).
I think I agree with everything on his list.
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I wrote last week in BDD about the Rule IV draft. The discussion included the topic of allowing the trading of draft picks.
Little attention has been paid to this, but earlier this month at the owners' meeting, Selig announced that Schuerholz will be examining the Rule IV draft and recommending changes ( or somethin like that ).
Can't see anything substantial happening until the expiration of the CBA but it is evident with the " slot recommendations " that MLB ain't happy with the draft as it stands.
It is past time to dump "God Bless America" from the seventh inning stretch.
Am I the only one who thinks there should be DH in the NL? I know the union would agree.... Let pitchers pitch and hitters hit. I for one am sick of the "you get to see strategy!" big deal- when was the last time anyone said - "hey remember that bobby valentine double swtich...awesome!"?
everything else on the list was ok
I don't care one way or the other about the NL DH, which probably means I'm for it...
But I really like Interleague play.
I will not support the wildcard. I like having 8 playoff teams, but I think the three division system is atrocious. I say: 2 leagues, and 2 divisions per league. The top 2 teams from each division go to the playoffs. Sure, a team like the 2006 Cardinals will get through, still, every once in a while. But I'll take that over every year.
As for the DH in the NL. Sometimes, I'm all for it, and sometimes I like that old-timey baseball with the comedy of Vicente Padilla at the plate. Sometimes I like how the AL game seems to go by faster, though, and how it is able to keep the best players in the game longer, as a bad fielder doesn't have to come out for a good one, because he's DHing, and a good pitcher doesn't have to come out for a pinch hitter--he's free to pitch as long as he's able. I like that.
More than anything, I'd love to just see the MLB get unified on this. Either have the DH in both leagues, or ban it from both.
If the DH is a good idea, then I fail to see a reason not to have an offense and a defense, and have them completely separate. If it's reasonable to say that a pitcher should have a designated hitter, then why not a slick-fielding shortstop? If you really want the best team on both sides of the ball, that's the way to do it. 9 David Ortiz's at the plate, and Rey Ordonez types all over the infield.
Otherwise, let the pitchers hit, and keep the decision making alive. As far as the "did you see that Bobby Valentine double switch?" comment, NL managers are second guessed all the time, these decisions are constantly debated. Maybe they aren't considered the exciting plays, but they certainly spark hours of discussion.
If I were making the game up from scratch, I'd chuck the DH entirely and make pitchers bat because I simply like it more.
That said, nothing on this point will change, because the union likes the DH in place due to the fact that older, higher-paid players tend to be DHs, and baseball would fear the outcry by traditionalists if they tried to go DH in both leagues.
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