Defensive substitution

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is orphaned as few or no other articles link to it. Please help introduce links in articles on related topics. (October 2006)

A defensive substitution in the game of baseball occurs when a currently non-playing player is placed into the field in place of a starting player, typically due either to injury or the appearance of a pinch hitter. In the American League, a pinch hitter is usually substituted for the position player in whose place he batted (although another common substitution is pinch-hitting a utility infielder for a second baseman and subsequently switching him for the shortstop in the field while moving the shortstop over to the now-vacant second base position). In the National League, which does not use the designated hitter rule, pinch hitters sometimes bat for pitchers. However, another common pitcher-substitution strategy in the NL is the double switch, in which a pitching change is coupled with a pinch-hitter who is also defensively substituted for a second player.