A defensive substitution in the game of
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
occurs when a currently non-playing player is placed into the field in place of another player, typically due either to injury or the appearance of a
pinch hitter. In the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor 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
In baseball, a utility player is a player who typically does not have the offensive abilities to justify a regular starting role on the team but is capable of playing more than one defensive position. These players are able to give the various s ...
for a
second baseman and subsequently switching him for the
shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...
in the field while moving the shortstop over to the now-vacant second base position). In the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...
(which, until 2022, did not use the
designated hitter
The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. The position is authorized by Major League Baseball Rule 5.11. It was adopted by the American League in 1973 and later by th ...
rule), pinch hitters sometimes bat for
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...
s. 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.
Baseball rules
{{Baseball-stub