Zambrano Headed to DL, Rogers Call for DH

By Benjy Lipsman in News on May 4, 2009 9:50PM

Curses sure are a hard thing to shake, and the one hanging over the Cubs may have reared its ugly head again this weekend [Ed's Note: Benjy, I've told you that curses aren't real! - M.G.]. The Cubs have lost their ace for a while, with word coming Monday afternoon that Carlos Zambrano is headed to the 15-Day DL for an injury suffered on the basepaths. This trip to the disabled list comes after Zambrano injured his hamstring trying to beat out a bunt on Sunday. He'll likely miss his next three scheduled starts.

Even before Zambrano's time off was official, the Trib's Phil Rogers decided to use the injury as an occasion to call for the National League to adopt the designated hitter. While many baseball purists want to see the leagues unified in their banishment of the DH, Rogers believes that a set of standardized rules for all of MLB should employ the DH in place of pitchers hitting.

As much as we love and respects the history of the game, some of us tend to agree with Rogers on this one. Pitchers face enough risk of injury when on the mound, so let's try and protect them when their team is up to bat. Given their high salaries and specialized skills, it's a lot harder for teams to overcome the loss of a star pitcher than it is to replace a player in the field and in the batting lineup -- even an all-star. Zambrano's missing a few starts could mean the difference between making or missing the playoffs for the Cubs.