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Designated hitter
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==Outside of Major League Baseball== ===Nippon Professional Baseball=== Japan's [[Pacific League]] adopted the designated hitter in 1975, two years after its adoption in the American League.<ref name="pacific league 1975">{{Cite journal |last=Graczyk |first=Wayne |date=October 20, 2010 |title=Time for Central League to adopt designated hitter |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2010/10/20/baseball/time-for-central-league-to-adopt-designated-hitter/ |journal=The Japan Times Online |language=en-US |issn=0447-5763}}</ref> Japan's [[Central League]] has not adopted the designated hitter β the only top-level professional league in the world to refrain from doing so {{As of|2025|lc=y}}.<ref name="central and national league no DH" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Coskrey |first=Jason |date=2022-03-26 |title=Central League pitchers get into swing of things at plate |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2022/03/26/baseball/japanese-baseball/cl-pitchers-hit/ |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=The Japan Times |language=en}}</ref> When teams from different leagues play against each other in the [[Japan Series]] or interleague games, the DH rule is adopted if the Pacific League's team hosts the game, similar to the MLB rules before the universal DH.<ref name="pacific league 1975" /> ===Mexican League=== The [[Mexican League]] introduced the designated hitter in 1974, one year after the American League.<ref>{{cite web |title=HISTORIA DE LA LIGA MEXICANA |url=http://www.milb.com/documents/1/7/4/96923174/HISTORIA_DE_LA_LIGA_MEXICANA_jl94yvga.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151116153747/http://www.milb.com/documents/1/7/4/96923174/HISTORIA_DE_LA_LIGA_MEXICANA_jl94yvga.pdf |archive-date=November 16, 2015 |access-date=October 7, 2019 |website=MiLB.com |language=es}}</ref> ===Winter league baseball=== The [[Cuban National Series]] adopted the designated hitter in 1977. ===Minor League Baseball=== The DH is used for all [[Minor League Baseball]] (MiLB) games. Prior to the adoption of the DH by the National League in 2022, only Rookie and Single-A level leagues used the DH rule in all games, while Double-A and Triple-A games, when both teams were National League affiliates the designated hitter was not used. The reason for the difference was that as players get closer to reaching the majors, teams preferred to have the rules mimic those of the major league teams for which the players may soon be playing.<ref>[http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/info/faq.jsp?mc=milb_info General Minor League information] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111112015517/http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/info/faq.jsp?mc=milb_info |date=November 12, 2011 }} (at "6. Do pitchers hit in the Minor Leagues?"). MiLB.com. Minor League Baseball. Retrieved September 26, 2009.</ref> The [[Atlantic League of Professional Baseball|Atlantic League]], an [[Independent baseball league|independent minor league]] that became an [[MLB Partner League]] after the 2021 MiLB reorganization, implemented an experimental "double-hook rule" for its 2021 season. Under this rule, once a team removes its starting pitcher it loses the right to use a DH for the rest of the game.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/31256639/mlb-atlantic-league-experiment-moving-back-mound-double-hook-dh |title=MLB to have Atlantic League experiment with moving back mound, 'double-hook' DH |first=Jesse |last=Rogers |website=ESPN.com |date=April 14, 2021 |accessdate=April 25, 2021}}</ref> The "double hook" rule was modified for the 2022 Atlantic League season. The change allows a team whose starting pitcher who goes at least five innings to keep its DH.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.atlanticleague.com/news/?article_id=1729|title=MLB Announces Experimental Rules for 2022 in ALPB|date=March 15, 2022|access-date=March 23, 2022}}</ref> ===Amateur baseball=== In American high schools and other amateur baseball leagues that use [[National Federation of State High School Associations]] (NFHS) rules, a DH may bat in place of one player in any position, not just a pitcher.<ref>{{Cite book |url=http://media.hometeamsonline.com/photos/baseball/PATPNJ/NFHS_2018_Rules.pdf |title=2018 NFHS BASEBALL RULES BOOK |publisher=Robert B. Gardner |year=2017 |editor-last=Hopkins |editor-first=Elliot |location=Indianapolis, Indiana |publication-date=November 8, 2017 |language=en |asin=B0779K64WW |access-date=May 12, 2019}}</ref> Many coaches use a designated hitter in place of the weakest hitter in the lineup, if they use one at all. In amateur baseball, many pitchers are also good hitters and will often play another position (or even DH) when not pitching. In 2020, NFHS rules were modified to also add a "Player/DH" rule where a player may start the game with offensive and defensive roles, and be substituted out only on defense while remaining in the game on offense as a DH.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-01-17 |title=2020 NFHS POINTS OF EMPHASIS AND HOW TO FOLLOW THEM |url=https://baseballrulesacademy.com/2020-nfhs-points-of-emphasis-and-how-to-follow-them/ |access-date=2022-03-18 |website=Baseball Rules Academy |language=en-US}}</ref> [[High school baseball in Japan|Japanese high school baseball]] is one of the few amateur baseball leagues in the world that has never used the designated hitter rule at all. In [[high school baseball in South Korea]], the rule has been adopted since 2004. [[American Legion]] rules, on the other hand, allow the DH only to bat for the pitcher; prior to 1995, the use of the DH was not allowed in Legion baseball at all. In [[college baseball]], [[NCAA]] rules<ref name="NCAA rules college baseball">{{Cite book |url=http://www.ncaapublications.com/productdownloads/BA20.pdf |title=2019 and 2020 Baseball Rules and Interpretations |publisher=NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION |year=2018 |editor-last=Brownlee |editor-first=Ben |location=Indianapolis |pages=63β65 |language=en |chapter=Rule 7βBatting |issn=0736-5209 |oclc=557495128 |access-date=May 13, 2019 }}</ref> state that the designated hitter must hit for the pitcher, but in many instances the pitcher is also a good hitter, and the coach may elect to let the pitcher bat in the lineup. If the pitcher opts to bat for himself, he is treated as two separate positions β a pitcher and a designated hitter (abbreviated P/DH on the lineup card) β and may be substituted for as such (i.e. if he is removed as the pitcher, he may remain as the designated hitter and vice versa). However, if a player who starts a game as a P/DH is relieved as the starting pitcher, he may not return to the mound even if he remains in the game as the DH, and he may not play any other defensive position after being relieved as the pitcher unless he immediately moves to another defensive position, in which case the new pitcher must assume the spot in the batting order of the fielder the P/DH substituted for, and the DH is lost for the remainder of the game. Conversely, a player who begins the game as the DH, but not as the pitcher, may come into the game as a reliever and remain as the DH (in effect becoming a P/DH), be relieved on the mound later in the game but continue to bat as the DH. In [[Little League Baseball]], the DH is not used except in the Senior League (age 15β16) division, where the DH can bat in place of any defensive player.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://baseballcoaching.tips/little-league-baseball-everything-you-need-to-know-from-bats-drills-rules-field-dimensions-uniforms-bracket-sheets-down-to-the-pitch-count-scorebook/ |title=Everything you need to know about Little League Baseball- From Bats, Drills, Rules, Field Dimensions, Uniforms, Bracket Sheets Down to the Little League Pitch Count Baseball Scorebook |last=Dean |date=June 7, 2011 |website=Baseball Coaching Tips |language=en-US |access-date=May 13, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Junior League Baseball |url=http://cantonlittleleague.org/Page.asp?n=18791 |access-date=May 13, 2019 |website=Canton Little League}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Little League Rules |url=http://www.rutherford-ll.info/rules.htm |access-date=May 13, 2019 |website=Rutherford-ll.info}}</ref> However, a league may adopt a rule which requires all players present and able to play to be listed in the batting order (such that the order contains more than nine players), and thus all players will have a turn to bat even when they are not assigned a fielding position. Players in the batting lineup without a position on the field are given the position designation ''extra hitter'' (EH), a position seen occasionally in other amateur organizations (both youth and adult) - and integrated as the "10th man" of [[Savannah Bananas]] exhibition ballgames since 2020 as part of the lineup alongside the DH.
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