| Host | |
| Curt Chaplin | |
| Announcer | |
| Rick Stern | |
| Broadcast | |
 | |
| Packager | |
| The William Carruthers Company | |
"ESPN Presents the ultimate sports challenge, DESIGNATED HITTER! And here's your all-star host, the commissioner himself, Curt Chaplin!"
Designated Hitter was the four-month-old ESPN sports game show based on baseball.
Gameplay[]
Three contestants competed in a game of sports knowledge with elements of baseball in it.
Main Game[]
Round 1[]
Each player in turn selected six questions from four sports categories; three of which were three main sports (baseball, basketball & football), and the fourth was a "Curve Ball" category focusing on all other sports. Each category contained five questions: the first four questions were worth different amounts and were all jump-in toss-ups, but the fifth question was known as the "Pinch-Hit" question in which the amount was undisclosed, and only the player who chose it could answer. Each player could only choose one Pinch-Hit.
Correct answers added the question's value to the total score of the player who answered right, but incorrect answers gave that player an "out"; any player who got three outs/three wrong answers lost $100 from their score. The two players with the highest scores advanced to Round 2; the 3rd place player was eliminated from the game.
Round 2[]
The two surviving players each selected one category to play. On each category, the players alternated turns answering a total of four questions in that category. When a player missed a question (and lost $100 for three outs), the opponent had a chance to steal the question and money if he/she wanted to. The player with the most money at the end of this round won the game and the right to play the "Grand Slam" round for up to $3,000.
Payoffs[]
The payoffs were the same in both rounds, and here's how the players scored for correct answers:
| Questions | Term | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Question #1 | Single | $25 |
| Question #2 | Double | $50 |
| Question #3 | Triple | $75 |
| Question #4 | Homer | $100 |
Grand Slam (Bonus Round)[]
In the "Grand Slam" round, the day's winner was asked four questions (one from each category), each worth different amounts. Here are the payoffs for each question:
| Questions | Values |
|---|---|
| Question #1 | $250 |
| Question #2 | $500 |
| Question #3 | $750 |
| Question #4 | $1,500 |
Correctly answering all four questions in this round awarded a total of $3,000. A wrong answer at any time ended the round.
Studio[]
Empire Studios, North Hollywood, CA
Trivia[]
- This was also a term meaning a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher.
- This was Curt Chaplin's second & last game show; his first was Grandstand. He later became the announcer on The People's Court. For 19 years he was the hallway interviewer; he has since passed the baton & microphone back to original host Doug Llewelyn. For the 1997 revived version, the show ended on July 21, 2023 after being on the air for no longer than 26 seasons.
- The show aired twice-weekly on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
- 36 episodes were produced.
YouTube Links[]
Billy Baker's 15 minutes of Shame, featuring a clip of his appearance on Designated Hitter
Full episode (Robert/Sidney/Anthony)