Pitcher and hitter?
In major league baseball, a designated hitter replaces the pitcher at bat. Is this obligatory? For example, can pitcher Shohei Ohtani hit in games where he is the starting pitcher?
Jean Dufresne
Response from Guillaume Lefrançois
The use of a designated hitter is not mandatory, but teams obviously do not deprive themselves of it. The arrival of Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Angels phenom who will miss the rest of the season with an oblique muscle injury, has led to the establishment of a new rule, which we commonly referred to as the “Ohtani rule”. This rule means that a player can therefore be registered in the lineup as a pitcher AND a designated hitter, but that he can retain his role as a designated hitter once he is removed from the game as a pitcher.
The putter and the head cover
PHOTO AARON DOSTER, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Club covers are used to prevent wear on clubs that could collide with the heads of other irons.
Except on rare occasions, professional golfers will use their putter (putter) on each hole. So why do the cadets, when they put this stick back in the bag, cover it with a stick cover?
André Gosselin
Response from Nicholas Richard
The putter has to be the most important club in a golf bag. Some golfers play with the same club for many years. This is why the majority of players decide to protect it with a stick cover. First, to avoid wear on the stick which could collide with certain iron heads, for example, when carrying the bag. Then, as each nick, tick or break in the surface of the putter could exert considerable influence on the ball in contact with the face of the club, it is better to take care of it. It is therefore with the objective of preservation and performance that golfers protect their putter.
Entry contracts
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Joshua Roy
How do entry contracts work with an NHL club? If the player plays in junior, does he receive all or part of his salary from the NHL? What if he plays in the American League?
Sylvain Paquette
Response from Guillaume Lefrançois
The contracts of players returning to the junior ranks are essentially extended by one year. In the jargon, we say that the contract “slips” (slide) one year. Let’s take the example of Joshua Roy, with the Canadian. He signed his three-year contract on March 30, 2022. As he spent the 2022-2023 season with the Sherbrooke Phœnix, the entry into force of his contract was postponed to 2023-2024, and it will therefore expire in 2026 This is where the famous 10-game limit comes into the equation: if a player plays 10 or more games in the NHL, his contract cannot “slip.” Note, however, that even when returning to the junior ranks, the player receives his signing bonus. Roy was therefore entitled to $92,500, according to CapFriendly.
As for the American League, rookie contracts provide for a lower salary to play there; this is why we talk about two-part contracts. Roy will therefore earn $80,000 in salary this season if he plays in Laval. He was also briefly seen with the Rocket during the 2022 playoffs. In this case, he had signed a professional tryout contract in order to be able to play.
Contracts and balloting
PHOTO OLIVIER JEAN, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Chris Wideman
Let’s take a player who has a one-way NHL contract. If he is placed on waivers, goes unclaimed and returns to the American League, does his salary count toward the NHL team’s payroll?
Steve Bilodeau
Response from Guillaume Lefrançois
Teams can “hide” $1.15 million of a player’s salary by sending him to the American League. This amount is indexed from year to year. Thus, if a player who accounts for 3 million under the payroll is transferred to the American League, his impact will be 1.85 million. However, he continues to receive his full salary. This means that for a player who earns less than 1.15 million, he essentially disappears from the equation when he is sold to the American League. Thus, Chris Wideman ($762,500) or newcomer Gustav Lindström ($950,000) will not have an impact under the CH ceiling if they are sold to Laval.
And Nicolas Beaudin, in all this?
PHOTO ARIANNE BERGERON, PROVIDED BY ARÉNA DU ROCKET INC.
Nicolas Beaudin
Why don’t you include Nicolas Beaudin in the list of defenders likely to be part of the Canadiens this season? He is a first choice, aged 23, who had a good season in Laval, if I trust his statistics.
Louis Marin
Response from Guillaume Lefrançois
Beaudin had his ups and downs in Laval, but he was indeed on the right track before getting injured. With 25 points in 39 games, he showed interesting offensive skills at the American League level. That said, veterans David Savard and Mike Matheson will occupy two positions in Montreal. For the other four positions, we find a range of young people, from Kaiden Guhle to Arber Xhekaj via Jordan Harris and Justin Barron, who are younger and who have been developed by the organization for longer. That’s without forgetting Johnathan Kovacevic, who caused some surprise after being claimed on waivers last year. In short, Beaudin is far away in the hierarchy.
