Overview
The designated hitter (DH) is a player who bats in the pitcher's spot in the batting order without taking the field defensively. In NPB, the Pacific League has used the DH since 1975, while the Central League long preserved the nine-man game the sport was born with. On 4 August 2025, however, the Central League's board of directors formally decided to adopt the DH from the 2027 season, positioning 2026 as a grace period before adoption, so the split between the two leagues lasts only through the 2026 season. The Pacific League benefits from deeper lineups by placing power hitters in the DH spot. Hiromitsu Kadota is the emblem of what that spot makes possible: in 1988, at age 40, he led the league in both home runs (44) and runs batted in (125) and became the oldest MVP in Japanese professional baseball history. Through the 2026 season, Central League pitchers still bat ninth, so the timing of pinch hitters and pitching changes remains a crucial strategic element. Interleague games follow the rules of the host club's league, with the DH used in Pacific League home games and not in Central League home games, which sometimes leaves Central League teams scrambling to fill the DH role. The Japan Series works the same way, applying the DH only in games at a Pacific League club's home park. MLB unified all of its clubs under the DH when the National League adopted it in 2022, and the shift in Japanese amateur baseball, where the national high school federation and the Tokyo Big6 and Kansai student leagues all decided to use the DH from the 2026 season, helped push the Central League toward its decision.