Print edition: 
There's a lot of talk about realignment in Major League Baseball. I'm not sure how I feel about it, honestly. I do know that if there are two leagues, as there currently are, then both should have the same number of teams.
That's not the case now — the American League has 14 teams, the National League has 16. The NL Central has six teams while the AL West has four.
Everybody has an idea for how baseball should be realigned. But do any of these people notice the elephant in the room?
It's no baby elephant, either; this thing is huge.
It's the designated hitter, where guys without gloves go to perpetuate their big league careers. The DH exists only in the American League; the National League has far too much sense to adopt the tricked-up notion of an extra bat in the lineup.
If realignment seeks uniformity, then the first place to become uniform is to decide once and for all what to do with the DH.
I hope they can it, but it won't be easy. The players union loves it some DH because it can keep big-name players on the payroll for years after they've become useless on the field of play.
Some of the greatest designated hitters in history couldn't catch a cold. Every night in American League ballparks, there are two guys — the DHs — who would probably have a panic attack if they had to catch a pop fly.
They are bats for hire and they drain the strategy and execution out of the game.
There are plenty of DH fans out there who proclaim the additional offense that the rule provides more than makes up for deficiencies.
No way.
Give me a National League game any day. The pitchers hitting for themselves. The double switches. The short benches. The bunting guys over.
A pitcher should also be a player. He should take batting practice and at least feel like he has a chance to make an offensive contribution to the game. There used to be a bunch of good-hitting pitchers in the game. The introduction of the DH has made it easier for pitchers to ignore hitting because at the minor-league level it's not a priority, in most cases.
Designated hitters aren't baseball players. And neither are pitchers who never have to step up to the plate.
Boston slugger David Ortiz is regarded as the best DH of the past decade. But when the Red Sox are on the field, Ortiz could be in the clubhouse eating a hoagie for all I know.
Ortiz has never played more than 70 games at first base during his career. These days, he rarely leaves the area around the bat rack unless it's his turn to hit.
Ortiz is 35 and is, occasionally, called on to play first base when Boston visits a National League stadium for inter-league play. It's always a big deal when Ortiz puts on a first baseman's glove because the guy is paid to hit.
Well, you can't hide an aging star player in the National League, which has steadfastly stood against the DH rule since it was introduced in 1973. Kudos to the good ol' NL, which is rightly called the Senior Circuit.
The American League is keeping seniors in the mix as designated hitters. Some of the game's all-time best DHs have been guys whose legs and arms have given out, but whose bats still sizzle as they advance in age.
Harold Baines, who played for a lot of teams during the 1980s and '90s, didn't retire until he was 41. But he played the outfield only twice after he turned 33, instead becoming a bat for hire. He did have a potent bat, finishing his 22-year career with 384 homers, 2,866 hits and 1,628 RBIs. But what would Baines' career numbers look like without the DH?
Frank Thomas, Don Baylor, Paul Molitor, Edgar Martinez, Hal McRae, Chili Davis, Andre Thornton and even Orlando Cepeda are other players who extended their careers — in some cases Hall of Fame careers — because of the DH.
But what about the guys who play the game, the whole game and nothing but the game? What about their careers.
It's tough being out on the field every day for 162 games. Playing defense is a grind. But it's part of being a baseball player.
If you can't play defense, then you shouldn't have a regular spot in the lineup. If you're past your prime as a player, then you should retire to become a pinch-hitter/bench player.
I get the theory behind the DH. At the time it was introduced, pitchers were having their way in baseball. Runs were tough to score.
Well, runs should be tough to score. And when they're produced, it shouldn't be by some gimpy-legged guy who can only do one thing.
So, as baseball moves toward a potential realignment, it should do so with the notion that 39 seasons of the designated hitter is enough. If the players union screams about the change, offer a 26th roster spot.
It's time for baseball to play by the same rules. It's time to pinch-hit for the DH.
