Best pitcher hitting moments in Milwaukee Brewers history
By Kenny Jilek
With the Designated Hitter coming to the NL and getting rid of pitchers hitting, possibly for good, we’ll take a look at some fun we’ve had watching Milwaukee Brewers’ pitchers hit.
There are a lot of arguments for the designated hitter in both leagues that make logical sense. It may bring in some more fans that want to see real hitters in all nine spots of the lineup. It unifies the leagues so they all play with the same rules. Players that can’t play the field or just slow down in later years, like Ryan Braun, can extend their careers, something the Milwaukee Brewers would benefit from.
And to an extent I agree with these arguments. I could watch Ryan Braun swing a baseball bat on repeat for the next 10 years, so having him around for a while longer sounds great to me. Unifying the leagues makes sense because having half of the teams playing with different rules has never really made sense.
However, the argument against wanting to see pitchers hit is where I draw the line. Sure, watching pitchers hit ends up in disappointment almost every time, but to be fair so does watching regular hitters. The league-wide on-base percentage was .323 last season, so I don’t think we’re all really watching baseball to only see hitting when even the guys who are paid to do it fail over two-thirds of the time.
Also, when a pitcher does get a hit it’s fun. Think about it, Christian Yelich or Keston Hiura hit a clean single the crowd claps or lightly cheers for a couple of seconds and the excitement is gone. A pitcher gets the same hit and it’s tons more fun. It’s the absurdity of it and in the same sentiment, everyone has a feeling of “that wasn’t supposed to happen,” which is what makes pitchers hitting such an endearing part of baseball.
Those moments, things that aren’t supposed to happen that create memories that last years, those are the ones I want to capture. So I’ve compiled a list of the best Milwaukee Brewers’ pitchers hitting moments and put them into three categories: Home Runs, other important hits, and the just wacky oddities (my personal favorite).
We’ll start with home runs, the mammoth blasts that only “real hitters” are supposed to hit that create moments of shock and euphoria when the guy that usually throws the ball hits it out of the park.