How might Phillies be affected if the DH comes to the National League?

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Phillies pitcher Joe Blanton homers in Game Four of the 2008 World Series

It’s an idea that has been discussed for at least the last four-and-a-half decades in Major League Baseball. And yesterday that idea of a “universal DH” again arose and spread quickly in discussions across the baseball landscape.

The DH or “Designated Hitter” is not a new concept, nor did the idea begin with its official introduction to the rules of the American League for the 1973 season. The idea of allowing the pitcher to have someone more proficient take their place in the batting order traces back to the earliest days of organized baseball.

As far back as February 3, 1906 the weekly newspaper “Sporting Life” printed the following: “The suggestion, often made, that the pitcher be denied a chance to bat, and a substitute player sent up to hit every time, has been brought to life again, and will come up for consideration when the American and National League Committees on rules get together. This time Connie Mack is credited with having made the suggestion.”

Mack’s suggestion did not gain traction with that rules committee, the press who covered the game, or the general public at that time. But it was an idea that cropped up from time to time. Finally, the pitching dominance experienced in the game as the 1960’s unfolded became impetus for conversations regarding the idea to spark once again.

For the 1969 season, Minor League Baseball began a four-year trial usage of the DH for their games. This led to the American League owners approving in an 8-4 vote the trial use of the DH for three years starting with the 1973 season. It has remained a part of the AL game ever since.

On August 13, 1980 the National League owners held a vote to consider adopting the DH, a measure that was actually expected to pass. With a majority of the 12 NL owners at the time needed to approve, the final vote tally went five against, four in favor, and three abstentions. There has not been another vote for a National League DH since that attempt.

Though the Designated Hitter is used by most other professional leagues around the world, Major League Baseball is not the only place that you will find such a split usage. Japan’s two largest leagues also have a split. The Central League does not utilize the DH, while the Pacific League has used it since the 1975 season.

Yesterday, the issue of a National League DH in Major League Baseball again exploded across social media following the release of an article by MLB insider Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.

In his piece on negotiations between MLB and the MLBPA, the player’s union, regarding possible rules changes, Rosenthal wrote:

“A universal designated hitter — something the players have sought for more than three decades, according to commissioner Rob Manfred — also was part of the union’s proposal. Under the plan, the National League would adopt the DH for the 2019 season.“

MLB Japan Series roster will include two members of the Philadelphia Phillies

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Hoskins will likely play the outfield and first base in Japan

The roster for the team representing Major League Baseball in the 2018 Japan All-Star Series against stars from Nippon Professional Baseball was announced today.

Two Phillies players, Rhys Hoskins and Carlos Santana, were named as members of the MLB squad. They will take part in a series of seven games to be played between the MLB and NPB stars from November 8-15 at various ball parks across Japan.

Santana was named as an infielder, with Hoskins listed as an outfielder. Other infielders named to the MLB roster were Whit Merrifield, Chris Taylor, Eugenio Suarez, and Amed Rosario. With none of those as natural first basemen, you could see both Santana and Hoskins man the position in a platoon.

Others listed as outfielders on the roster were Mitch Haniger, Kevin Pillar, Enrique Hernandez, and a pair of exciting young players from Phillies division rivals, Ronald Acuna of the Braves and Juan Soto of the Nationals. The catchers for the MLB squad will be Yadier Molina, Robinson Chirinos, and J.T. Realmuto.

The MLB pitching staff will feature two members of the World Series-champion Boston Red Sox, left-hander Brian Johnson and righty Hector Velazquez.

Other right-handers on the roster are Matt Andriese, Scott Barlow, John Brebbia, Junior Guerra, Chris Martin, Dan Otero, Yusmeiro Petit, Collin McHugh, and Kirby Yates.

The only southpaws on the MLB staff will be Daniel Norris and Vidal Nuno.

Also on the MLB staff will be right-hander Kenta Maeda of the National League champion Los Angeles Dodgers. Maeda hails from Senboku-gun, Japan, which is in the northern part of the main island, about 350 miles north of Tokyo.

MLB will be sending an experienced coaching staff under manager Don Mattingly. The staff will include former playing greats Edgar Martinez and Hideki Matsui, the latter of whom was the 2009 World Series MVP in the New York Yankees six-game victory over the Phillies.

This will be the 37th time that MLB stars have toured Japan dating back to 1908. MLB Network will provide live coverage of most of the games and many events. The games will take place in the Tokyo Dome, at Mazda Zoom Zoom Stadium in Hiroshima, and at the Nagoya Dome in Nagoya.

Originally published at Phillies Nation as "Two Phillies named to MLB Japan All-Star Series roster"

Japanese lefty pitcher Yusei Kikuchi may be on Phillies radar

Yusei Kikuchi with Seibu Lions in Japan
(Photo: えすぱにぃ  via Wiki Commons)

This will be a big off-season for the Philadelphia Phillies as the club tries to take the next step forward in their return to contending status.

While controlling owner John Middleton and GM Matt Klentak will certainly be trying to woo familiar big names such as Bryce Harper and Manny Machado, they will also be exploring any other option possible to improve the roster.

One of the less conventional options will be the international market. There will be no Shohei Ohtani available this winter. However, there may be another Japanese player available who could help the Phillies step forward in the 2019 season.

Yusei Kikuchi is a 27-year-old left-hander who is an eight-year veteran of the Seibu Lions of the Japanese Pacific League. Kikuchi has a career 73-48 mark with a 2.82 ERA and 1.176 WHIP, allowing just 830 hits over 1,028.1 innings across 162 games, 157 of those as starts. The southpaw also carries a 919/379 K:BB ratio.

Jon Heyman of Fancred Sports reported today that he “is expected to make the leap to the majors next year, and he should draw extensive interest. Most teams have been to Japan to see him this year.” Heyman listed the Phillies among those MLB teams with interest.

Heyman quoted a scout on Kikuchi’s repertoire and his potential fit in a big-league rotation:

“…he’s a good lefty who throws at 92-93 mph with a cutter, a slider and good straight change. He’s a solid three (third starter), maybe better than that.”

In a piece on the Arizona Diamondbacks attempt to sign Japanese high school pitcher Shumpei Yoshikawa back in late August, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic for USA Today wrote that Kikuchi “was said to be close to signing with a major league club out of high school in 2009 but ultimately decided not to, in part because of advice from his high school coach."

The Phillies could use at least one quality addition to their starting rotation next year to slot in between Aaron Nola and Jake Arrieta. That would theoretically leave Vince Velasquez, Nick Pivetta, and Zach Eflin to battle for the fourth-fifth starter roles.

Whether Kikuchi fits the profile of a #2 starter, which is what the Phillies could really use, is debatable. However, he could be expected to at least give them another #3 level arm, which would still be valuable.

Expect this to be a busy off-season for the Phillies management group. The team was in legitimate contention for most of the season before collapsing over the last seven weeks. That collapse should leave the club’s decision-makers eyes wide open to options such as Kikuchi, Harper, Machado, and a number of other new additions.

Originally published at Phillies Nation as "Phillies expected to make a push for Japanese southpaw Yusei Kikuchi"

Japanese Star Ohtani Wants to Play in MLB by 2018

The top star player in Japanese baseball, Shohei Otani, has announced publicly that he wishes to perform for one more season in his homeland before making the move to Major League Baseball.

Otani will turn 23 years old in July of 2017. He would likely be directly affected by terms of the new Collective Bargaining Unit between MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association.

Under the newly negotiated terms, MLB teams may not sign a player for more than $5 million until they reach age 25. It has been estimated that a player of Otani’s talents would fetch upwards of $250-300 million if he were an unfettered free agent.