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The late owner of the Cincinnati Reds, Marge Schott, may have had her issues, but it was difficult to argue when she one day uttered what should be her legacy: "I don't like the designated hitter. A guy who plays should be able to catch and hit."
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Part of the fun of the game is in the unexpected. A no-hitter suddenly taking shape. Big Frank Thomas legging out a triple the other night for the first time in 2,408 at-bats. Or Cubs ace Carlos Zambrano drilling another pitch over the fence. He has 12 lifetime homers -- and counting.
"Most power of any pitcher I've seen," Maddux says. "B.P. was cool. He hit it further than Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez."
Until Owings came along last year, Atlanta's Mike Hampton (.242 lifetime, 15 homers) generally was the first one brought up in any discussion of a pitcher's prowess as a hitter.
From the recent past, Rick Rhoden (.238 lifetime, nine homers), Don Robinson (.231, 13), Fernando Valenzuela (.200, 10) and Dwight Gooden (.196, eight) are among those who weren't automatic outs -- and, when the stars were aligned properly, could pop a key homer now and again.
Wes Ferrell is atop the pitchers' all-time homer list at 38, followed by Bob Lemon (37, though listing him is a bit unfair because he also played third base and the outfield), Hall of Famer Red Ruffing (36), Hall of Famer Warren Spahn (35 in 1,872 at-bats) and Earl Wilson (35 in only 720 at-bats).
Former Yankees infielder and current Padres broadcaster Jerry Coleman swears Ruffing had a clause in his old Yankees contracts that paid him an extra $5,000 a year for his pinch-hitting duties.
There is no such clause for Owings, who is proficient enough with the stick that Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin employed him as a pinch-hitter six times last season and four times already in 2008.
"There are times when you have someone not available on the bench, or you have to save someone for situation X, and with a five-man bench and a 12-man pitching staff these days, you don't have as much flexibility," Melvin says.
Melvin always makes sure to give Owings as much advance warning as possible when a potential pinch-hitting situation might arise, though the skipper chuckled and downplayed that.
"He wears his cleats in the dugout, anyway," says Melvin of days when Owings isn't pitching.
The kid always has known his way around a bat rack. Owings, who batted .333 with four homers and 15 RBI as a rookie in 2007, hit .448 with 25 home runs as a senior for Gainesville (Ga.) High School (the Red Elephants!), and he finished his high school career with 69 career homers -- one short of the national high school record.
Worse, Owings says, his high school career ended with him in the on-deck circle. A teammate -- whom Owings says felt horrible -- made the last out of a playoff game, denying Owings one last chance to tie the record.
"It wasn't meant to be," says the 25-year-old right-hander, now in his second season with the Diamondbacks. "And that same year, Jeff Clement (now a catcher in the Mariners' system) broke it, anyway. I think he finished with 73 total."
In one sense, hitting for pitchers is kind of like whether or not you're a fast runner: You're either born with a modicum of skill, or you're not. Those who at least have a base to work from while they're devoting most of their time to pitching. Those who aren't, well, you've seen how ugly that can get.
"I've just been blessed from an early age," Owings says. "Any time I get in the box, I try to enjoy it."
Sometimes, he's had to fight to enjoy it.
"Coming through the (minor-league) system, there are days when pitchers are discouraged from swinging for whatever reason," Owings says. "Injuries, keeping the focus on pitching."
Seems expectations have been lowered so much for pitchers in the age of the DH that the element of surprise a good-swinging pitcher can bring is almost too much.
Two Sundays ago in Phoenix, with runners on second and third, nobody out, and Arizona trailing San Diego 6-3, Melvin sent Owings up to bat for Brandon Medders. The right-handed Owings would face lefty Randy Wolf, with reliever Cla Meredith ready to go in San Diego's bullpen.
Padres manager Bud Black found himself close to calling for Meredith, though he suspected Melvin was attempting to lure him into the move so Arizona could then send outfielder Jeff Salazar to the plate.