AN AMBIDEXTROUS PITCHER SUCCEEDS IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL. This article by Jane Lee on the MLB site describes how, in an amazing first, Pat Venditte pitched two scoreless innings in the major leagues using his left arm to pitch to left handed hitters and his right arm to pitch to right handed hitters. A left handed pitcher generally has an advantage against left handed batters, and a right hander has an advantage against right handed batters.
What happens when a batter who can bat either left handed or right handed (a “switch hitter”) faces a pitcher who can throw with either hand (a “switch pitcher”)? Baseball rules now provide that the batter must first choose which side he will bat from and then the pitcher chooses which hand to throw with.
His manager, Bob Melvin is quoted: “You can’t even fathom how somebody can do that. It’s tough enough to perform at this level throwing from one side, let alone two.”