Past studies estimating the marginal revenue products of baseball players have assumed individual players' hitting performances to be independent of teammate spillovers. However, the baseball community's widely held belief in “protectionâ€â€”that a good (bad) player can improve...

"Past studies have found a positive correlation between the use of the designated hitter in baseball and hit batters, but the reason for this is debatable. Using a new micro-level data set of individual plate appearances, we control for detailed cost-benefit attributes that affect the decision...

Past studies estimating the marginal revenue products of baseball players have assumed individual players' hitting performances to be independent of teammate spillovers. However, the baseball community's widely held belief in "protection" - that a good (bad) player can improve (diminish) the hit...

In baseball, allowing a designated hitter (DH) to bat for the pitcher creates the potential for moral hazard among pitchers, who may then hit more batters without the fear of retaliation by the opposing team. The use of the DH in only one of Major League Baseball's two leagues provides a natural...