There have been some great-hitting Major League pitchers, like Babe Ruth. It’s a good bet that the Babe would have hated the DH rule when he was still just a pitcher. On the other hand, there have always been the automatic-out kind of pitchers who spurred people like Connie Mack as far back as 1906 to advocate for a designated hitter.
The idea finally caught on in the American League in 1973 and the National League in 2022. Here are some of the best arguments for the DH (meaning, these guys were really lousy hitters).
Ron Herbel: 1963-1971, .029 Lifetime Batting Average: Herbel must have been embarrassed to step to the plate on a Giants team that boasted Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, and Bobby Bonds. In 206 lifetime at-bats, Herbel collected a total of six hits. He struck out 125 times and only walked eight times, giving him an on-base percentage of .065 and making him the worst-hitting pitcher in Major League Baseball history.
Don Carman: 1983-1992, .057 Lifetime Batting Average: Carman was used as a starter until 1990, when he became a fixture in the bullpen. National League fans were probably grateful, as they no longer had to watch him attempt to hit a baseball. In 209 total at-bats, Carman had a whopping total of 12 hits, all singles. In 1986, Carman went the whole season, 31 at-bats, without a hit.
Luke Walker: 1965-1974, .059 Lifetime Batting Average: Luke Walker pitched for the Pittsburgh Pirates during eight of his nine seasons and mercifully pitched for the Detroit Tigers in 1974, his final season when he didn’t have to pick up a bat. In 188 total at-bats, Walker struck out 107 times. All of his 11 career hits were singles. To put his batting average in perspective, imagine going to the plate 20 times and getting one hit.
Dean Chance: 1961-1971, .066 Lifetime Batting Average: A great pitcher, Chance won the American League Cy Young award in 1964 with the Los Angeles Angels, compiling a 20-9 record with a 1.65 ERA, 15 complete games and 11 shutouts. He had a 2.92 career ERA. But he was as bad at batting as he was good at pitching. In 662 career at-bats, Chance struck out an astounding 422 times, giving him a 63.4-percent strikeout rate.
Clem Labine: 1950-1962, .075 Lifetime Batting Average: Clem Labine gained fame during the 1955 season for the Brooklyn Dodgers, winning 13 games, mostly out of the bullpen, and helping the Dodgers to win their first-and-only World Series title while in Brooklyn. But he couldn’t hit his way out of a wet paper bag, as his minuscule average testifies. He did, however, hit three home runs in his career.
Dick Drago: 1969-1981, .077 Lifetime Batting Average: Drago was superb in the Boston Red Sox bullpen in 1975 when he helped them reach the World Series against the Cincinnati Reds. He spent his entire career in the American League and must have been grateful when the DH came along in 1973. He only had one plate appearance after that. But he compiled a dreadful batting record before then. In 274 total at-bats, Drago had 21 total hits, just four of them for extra bases.
Ben Sheets: 2001-2010, .077 Lifetime Batting Average: It’s too bad Sheets didn’t join the Milwaukee Brewers before they moved from the AL to the NL in 1998. That would have spared him much humiliation attempting to hit a baseball. In 436 total at-bats, Sheets collected three extra-base hits and struck out an impressive 206 times against just 18 walks.
Mike Bielecki: 1984-1997, .078 Lifetime Batting Average: Except for one year in his 14-season career, Bielecki played in the National League, where opposing pitchers must have salivated every time he came to the plate. In 282 total at-bats, Bielecki recorded 22 singles and no extra-base hits.
Bill Hands: 1965-1975, .078 Lifetime Batting Average: You would expect a pitcher to have a good knowledge of the strike zone, and Hands at least demonstrated that, walking 48 times during his career. He wasn’t very good at hitting strikes, however. In 472 lifetime at-bats, he had a 52.7 percent strikeout rate.
Doug Davis: 1991-2011, .083 Lifetime Batting Average: Davis was not a great pitcher. Generally the fourth or fifth starter, he compiled a career record of 92-108 with a 4.44 ERA. But he was far worse in the batter’s box. In 412 total at-bats, Davis had six total extra-base hits and drew only four walks. He struck out 175 times.
Jeff Fassero: 1991-2006, .083 Lifetime Batting Average: From a batting standpoint, it was lucky for Fassero he went from being a starting pitcher to a reliever, where he didn’t get many more opportunities at the plate. He struck out 151 times in 276 career at-bats for a whiff rate of 54.7 percent.
Wilbur Wood: 1961-1978, .084 Lifetime Batting Average: The great knuckleballer probably felt like he was trying to hit his pitching when he stepped to the plate. In 322 official at-bats, Wood had just two extra-base hits and struck out a remarkable 189 times for an outrageous 58.9-percent strikeout rate.
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. He is the author of The God Squad: The Born-Again San Francisco Giants of 1978. This article first appeared in The Vacaville (California) Reporter on June 30, 2020.