Interesting quote in last Sunday’s paper from Seattle’s Edgar Martinez assessing his chances to become a Hall of Famer.
He’s lamenting not having enough home runs or runs batted in, which is true enough, but he misses the big point: He hasn’t played in the field since the early `90s.
The Hall of Fame is for players, not batters. Is there any player worthy of selection who was primarily a designated hitter? I don’t think so.
The DH has outlived its intended use–to add offense to the game. It’s a joke that guys who haven’t had the ability to play the field in years–Harold Baines, Jose Canseco–still draw major-league paychecks.
Since the players union won’t dream of giving up jobs for the sake of bettering the game, let’s just add two roster spots for each team to be filled by scrappy, underpaid utility players the fans love to cheer for and eliminate the DH.
Sorry, Edgar, but we hardly knew ye, sitting in the dugout waiting to hit every third inning.
