It takes A LOT and I mean A LOT before Cito Gaston shows any kind of emoition - but the sheer stupidity of Inter-League baseball had Gaston showing real anger in his post game press conference last night - even though the Jays won.

And I agree with him. Watching American League pitchers try to bat is ridiculous. And sure enough after watching the mind numbing debacle of intentional walks by Phillies pitchers to load the bases early in the game to get to the Blue Jays pitching spot in the batting order - that was bad enough - but then we witnesses the ugly site of a Blue Jay pitcher injuring himself batting in extra innings. Just what the Jays don't need - another pitching injury.

I'm sorry - American League teams pay millions to their pitchers to pitch. It is absurd to risk injury having them do things they (and their bodies) are not used to doing. If there has to be Inter League ball use the DH in both League's parks.

I'm sorry but Roy Halladay should not pitch in Washington this weekend - he is too valuable a property to risk tweeking his groin running bases or batting - something he is not used to doing.

This is from today's Toronto Star - and I completely agree with Gaston.
*****
Most nights, whether the Jays have just beaten a first-place team or lost their ninth straight, Gaston speaks at an even pace with a slight Texas drawl. But last night he furrowed his brow as he spoke, the words tumbling quickly from his lips with an edge reporters don't often hear.

Since interleague play began last month Gaston had expressed his displeasure for it, and not just because the Jays have traditionally performed poorly against National League opponents. Instead, Gaston's resented having to play by National League rules, arguing that forcing pitchers to hit put American League teams at a disadvantage and endangered hurlers unaccustomed to the rigours of baserunning.

His worst fears were realized at the end of a five-run Toronto 10th inning, when closer Scott Downs injured his left foot after a grounder to short. Downs hobbled down the first-base line, then left the game.

"That's what happens," said a disgusted Gaston. "My guys don't take batting practice every day and they don't run, so things like this are going to happen." The team said X-rays on the foot were negative, but no one could offer an outlook on the man who has emerged as the club's most reliable relief pitcher.

Any extended absence for Downs – who has eight saves and a 1.98 ERA this season – would represent yet another body blow to a pitching staff already wracked by injuries. Early last week, the team revealed that starting pitcher Jesse Litsch had undergone ligament replacement surgery on his right elbow, and last Friday ace Roy Halladay left a start after straining a groin muscle.
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So is it acceptable for a National League pitcher to get hurt while batting but not an American League one? It's not as if NL pitchers spend loads of time in the batters box, though I suppose a little is more than almost nothing.

I like Cito, great manager. But this is whining about the system. If a guy gets hurt on the running the bases so be it. Downs could have gotten hurt just as easily attempting to cover play at first.

What will we hear next? A manager groaning about his All-Star DH who pulled a muscle while fielding a ball in an interleague contest?

Interleague play is now in it's thirteenth season. It's not going away, if these AL pitchers aren't in shape to bat and get hurt doing it that's their own fault.

(totally pulling for the Jays to play in October though, just sayin')

interleague sucks but it doesn't suck because AL pitchers have to bat, run, bunt, etc etc. that's idiotic.

and using DH at NL parks to accommodate AL teams is even more moronic.

i guess it's only stupid when a team is 1-6 vs. NL east when most AL teams have winning records vs. NL teams. tough luck. suck it up. and the beat the phillies....too bad, down got injured. huge advantage for phils.

I think it's great. The teams from both leagues SHOULD face each other at least a few times during the season, and the intra and inter-city regional rival matchups (Mets vs. Yankees, Pittsburgh vs. Phillies, White Sox vs. Cubs, Cardinals vs. Royals, Oakland vs. SF, LA Angels vs. LA Dodgers, etc.) are great for fans and the game. Cito Gaston should stop his whining. Have the damned pitchers practice batting and be done with it. For most of the history of major league baseball pitchers batted, and when they switch leagues they have to do so; what's the big deal? I agree that the DL is awful. It should have been abolished a decade ago.

I think pitchers should bat, but I hate interleague play for several reasons:

1) It's dumb to have one league (and inter-league play essentially means that there really aren't two leagues any more) playing with two different sets of rules.

2) It makes for unbalanced schedule difficulty. Because you only play a few teams in the other league, whether you happen to play good teams or bad teams in the other league could be decisive in a pennant race.

3) It messes up statistics...you can't readily compare players by normalizing them to league averages anymore, because they played some games out of league. Granted, not something most people would worry about, but it irritates me.

It's also (of course) against tradition, but it's really numbers one and two that concern me. Either go back to two separate leagues other than the world series or make it one giant league, with or without a DH (I prefer without), and have every team play every other team at least four times, twice away, twice at home.

They're both in the National League, but point taken on the rest.

There is too much interleague play because they decided the inter-city teams (the two NY teams, the two Chicago teams, etc.) had to play two series, one in each team's home park, so that many of the other matchups now are not very compelling to most fans. Does anyone care about Tampa Bay at Colorado or Pittsburgh at Minnesota? At least next week when the Phillies visit the Rays it'll be a World Series rematch.

I would cut back interleague play to this: the inter-city teams and other designated "natural rivals" would play four games total, two in each home park, and there would be two-game series between other teams on a rotational basis (similar to what they do now).

The unbalanced schedule is not just a result of interleague play but also because there are 16 NL teams and 14 AL teams (which also results in 15 interleague games and one NL game). Before they can balance the schedule even a little, they need to restructure. Either add 2 more teams to the AL, reduce the NL by 2 teams or move one team from NL to AL and make all divisions 5 teams each. Then they can tweak the schedule to even things out. If needed they can drop a couple of games and play 160 or 158 or whatever number would be needed.

Fresh off a sweep of the Phillies in Philly - go figure - so this ain't whining today.

I agree with Joe - sure it's great for fans in those cities for the Mets to play the Yankees or Cubs vs the White sox and a few other rivalries that work. But for so many others there just isn't a natural rival in the other league. Take the Jays for instance - when the Expos were around - sure we had one natural rival - but now who. Nobody! So this year we are doing 3 in Philly and they are playing 3 here. We played 3 in Atlanta and have 3 in Washington. Here we saw the Marlins last weekend and then next week we have the Reds coming in before the Phillies . Only the Phillies have any kind of local appeal realistically and that is because they are the defending World Series champions. Sure a few locals might show up to see local boy Joey Votto of the Reds - but no great interest in who we are playing in those games. FYI - the Thursday game against the Reds will have 100+ gay fans there as part of Pride Toronto celebrations.

I know pitchers in the NL usually don't do much better than their AL counterparts but at least once every 5 days they get a couple of at bats and undoubtedly because of that throughout the season are taking some batting practice and practice running the bases.

For a starting American League pitcher - with their team only playing 9 games ALL YEAR in an NL park - that likely means they will at most see TWO starts ALL YEAR LONG in ballparks where they will have to bat. So realistically how much time are you going to dedicate to practice for what in all likelihood will amount to maybe SIX at bats all year? So of course they are rarely going to be practicing running the bases or taking batting practice. And as a result there is a greater risk of injury to them as is always the case when you ask your body to do something it is not used to doing. That's just a simple fact.

And to me the difference in offensive strategy in an AL home game versus an NL home game is so different - that in many ways it is a DIFFERENT game. Games when the pitcher has to bat is a DIFFERENT game than one where the 9th batter is somebody with a 300 average and home run power. The entire approach to the game from an offensive point of view is different. You almost never have to think about such things as telling your guy not to steal as I'm sure the Jays wish they had done a couple of times the other night. Instead after steals with first base open - twice the Phillies intentionally walked the Jays # 8 batter so they could get to the pitcher. You just don't see that in the American League - its a DIFFERENT game. Like the CFL with 3 downs is different from the NFL with 4. Sure a touchdown is still a touchdown, a field goal a field goal and you need 10 yards for a first down - but it is a DIFFERENT game.

And that is why I think Interleague play is not my cup of tea and l still think forcing AL pitchers to bat in NL parks is stupid. And this is only a hunch - but I'm guessing fans of most American League teams - especially those who don't have a natural NL rival - would agree.

Alas, there'll be no changes til Beelzebud is gone.

More than likely the DH dies when the players union allows it to happen. Not holding breath on that one.

And if I'm an AL pitcher I keep my batting and running skills sharp, because today's Blue Jay could become a Pirate in the blink of an eye.

That was a serious brain slip on my part, so I appreciate the kindness. Yes, that Alabama-esque T between them isn't a different state, just a very long stretch of the same one.


Some of the matchups aren't so interesting, I admit.


I totally agree.

Also, since pitchers move quite frequently between leagues these days, they really ought to learn how to use a bat. The DL mainly benefits older batters who can't play the field anymore. Dave Kingman was a perfect example, but there are many others. It still should be eliminated.

mets and braves have 15 interleague games while the phillies, marlins, and nationals have 18.

who makes this schedule?

It will remain unbalanced like that until there are the same number of teams in each league and an even number of teams in both. Simply moving on NL team to the AL won't work because then that's 15 in each and that would result in one interleague series all season long. So MLB would need to contract 2 teams or (God forbid) add two teams so that there are 14 or 16 teams in each league.

Phillies had 15 last year. They were 4-11. They're on their way to worse than that if they don't wake up, but that's a rant for a different thread.

And the MLBPA will OK that when the Cubs win the World Series or Hell freezes over. There's no way the most powerful union in the world would ever allow the DH to simply be eliminated.

You know what else is stupid? These ugly July 4 caps all the teams are wearing.