In my previous column on this topic, I wrote about MLB pitchers who would have welcomed the designated hitter. Here, I identify pitchers (both living and passed on) who likely would have wanted to sustain their presence in the batting order.
Photo courtesy Parade
Babe Ruth: With the Boston Red Sox from 1915-1918, Babe won 78 games as the best left-handed pitcher in the American League. He was twice among the top 10 in pitching and hitting categories for a single season: 1915 (wins; homers) and 1918 (ERA; everything). One hardly needs to prove his batting prowess, but here are the figures: 714 home runs, 2,217 RBIs, a .342 batting average, a .474 on-base percentage, and a .690 slugging percentage.
Micah Owings: In his six-year National League career (2007-2012), the 6-foot-5 righthander was a credible pitcher, compiling a 32-33 record with a 4.86 ERA. But he stood out at the plate. In his rookie season, he hit .333 with four homers in 60 at-bats. The following year, he hit .304 in 56 at-bats. He was a .283 career hitter with nine home runs in 205 at-bats.
Ken Brett: Like Owings, the lefty was a solid pitcher, compiling a record of 83-85 over 14 seasons with a 3.93 ERA. But he is remembered more for his prowess at the plate (after all, he is George Brett’s big brother). Ken had a .262 career batting average with ten home runs in 347 at-bats with a .406 slugging percentage. His .310 batting average in 1974 was higher than six of the eight starting position players on the Pirates, a team that won the National League Eastern Division title!
Wes Ferrell, Home Run Hitter (photo JohnPielli.com)
Wes Ferrell: In 1931, the righty remarkably hit as many home runs (nine) as he surrendered on the mound. That year, he also threw a no-hitter against the St. Louis Browns while driving in four runs with a double and a homer. His 38 career homers still stand as the record among players who pitched their entire career (home runs as a pitcher in the game, not as a DH like Shohei Ohtani). He had a lifetime batting average of .280 and drove in 208 runs.
Red Lucas: Here’s a guy who defies all the stereotypes of pitchers that led to the dark day when the American League adopted the DH rule. Lucas pitched from 1923-1938 in the National League with a 157-135 record and a 3.72 ERA. But what made him stand out was that he was used regularly as a pinch-hitter! He had 437 at-bats and 114 hits as a stand-in, both top-10 among pinch-hitters. He also had a .281 career batting average.
Jim Tobin: The Boston Braves starter became the only pitcher to ever hit three successive home runs in a game on May 13, 1942. In his fourth at-bat, he forced outfielder Ducky Medwick to the left-field fence for what was almost home run number four. Tobin was a career .230 hitter.
Bob Gibson: The Hall of Fame pitcher was also a threat with the bat, compiling a career .206 batting average with 24 home runs and 144 RBIs. In his 1968 MVP season, when he compiled a minuscule 1.12 ERA, he also had the same on-base percentage (.233) as the batters he faced. He batted just .170 that year, but that was only .014 lower than his opponents’ average — .184.
Rick Wise: The highlight of the righthander’s 18-year career was June 23, 1971. He shook off the after-effects of the flu to no-hit the Reds in Cincinnati, driving in three of the four Philadelphia runs with two home runs. As a pitcher, Wise was 188-181 lifetime with a 3.69 ERA. He hit .195 for his career with 15 home runs.
Don at the plate (photo courtesy Think Blue LA)
Don Drysdale: Since 1901, the career Dodger is one of only four players in baseball history to at least twice record a higher OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging average) than any of the position players on their squad: .852 in 1958 and .839 in 1965. The Hall of Famer had a 209-166 career mark as a pitcher with a 2.95 ERA and 2,486 strikeouts. He hit 29 home runs.
Walter Johnson: The Big Train threw 38 1-0 shutouts and is the only man to win 20 games and hit .400 in the same season (1925, when he hit .433). The Hall of Famer’s career pitching line is incredible: 417 wins against 279 losses, a 2.17 ERA with 3,509 strikeouts. But he was no slouch at the plate, turning in a career .235 batting average with 24 home runs, 255 RBIs, and a .342 slugging percentage.
Don Newcombe: Newcombe threw left and hit right and did both well. His 149 career wins against 90 losses gave him a .623 winning percentage along with a 3.56 ERA. He had a .271 lifetime average at the plate, belted 15 home runs, and knocked in 108 in his ten-year career. Like Lucas, Newcombe was often used as a pinch hitter.
Shohei Ohtani: Ohtani is an anomaly for this column, as he loves the DH. He is a starting pitcher and DH for the Los Angeles Dodgers. The left-handed-hitting, right-handed-throwing Ohtani hit .310 for the Dodgers in 2024 with 54 homers and 130 RBIs. He didn’t pitch in 2024 but will again be a two-way player in 2025.
____________
Matt Sieger, now retired sports reporter/columnist who worked for New York State and California newspapers, did his undergraduate work at Cornell University and received a master’s in journalism from Syracuse University. This article first appeared in The Vacaville Reporter on June 26, 2020, and was contemporized for publication here.
You forgot Rick Ankiel.He came in as a fireballing pitcher with some pop in his bat, then caught Steve Blass Disease in the 2000 Playoffs. He came back as a power hitting outfielder for the Cardinals in 2007, slugging over .500 in his first two years as an outfielder.