When Major League Baseball implemented the universal DH back in 2022, it was seen as essentially the end of pitchers hitting for themselves (unless you're Shohei Ohtani).
Well, we should have accounted for the occasional poor lineup management because it's 2025 and we're so back.
During Sunday's game between the Diamondbacks and Cubs, D-backs manager Torey Lovullo used all his bench players and moved Ketel Marte from DH to second base, burning the designated hitter in a non-injury. That meant that pitcher Ryne Nelson had to hit for himself when the seventh spot in the order rolled around.
Nelson made his MLB debut in 2022, so he had zero big-league at-bats. But there he was in a huge spot in the eighth inning with two runners in scoring position. Well, guess what? Nelson came through in the clutch.
RYNE NELSON IS BRINGING BACK PITCHERS WHO HIT!!! pic.twitter.com/gsOGsV8pGs
— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) March 30, 2025
Nelson hit a chopper through the middle of the infield to add some insurance with an RBI single. Eugenio Suarez was thrown out at home trying to add a second run. But still, for a first-career at-bat, Nelson couldn't have asked for much better.
We probably won't see him hit again either, so Nelson will likely finish his career with a 1.000 batting average. Just amazing.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Diamondbacks pitcher Ryne Nelson had to hit for himself and it couldn’t have been more glorious
