It’s unclear when the nearly three-month-old labor dispute between Major League Baseball players and owners will end — or if it will. But commissioner Rob Manfred has already announced that the league has wrung a long-sought concession from players: he has made the designated hitter rule universal. It’s the end of an era for professional baseball. For many who love the game, this is also the end of the story.
Excusing pitchers for hitting in the National League might sound like anything — the designated hitter has been a hallmark of the American League for decades. But it’s a third strike at the heart of the game, and it will eliminate some of what has made baseball a school of character for generations of American children.
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