MLB: Designated Hitter Options for the NL West
We’ve talked about the one man, MLB Players Association president Tony Clark, who can push for the designated hitter to be added to the National League. In this slide show, the plan is to systemically refute the argument that rosters of NL teams will need a few seasons to adjust to the new rule and insure they remain competitive with their American League counterparts. This slide show deal specifically with the NL West; we’ve also made cases in the NL Central and the NL East.
The criteria for making this list is relatively short, but priority has been given to players already under contract for 2017. Some will be entering contract years, but most are beyond next season. Admittedly, especially in cases where organizations are rebuilding, some of the choices are a bit of a reach, but every team already uses the DH in American League parks, so a nod has been given to players who would benefit most from becoming a designated hitter.
Let’s begin…
Next: Dodgers
We begin exploring designated hitter options in the National League West with the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Andre Ethier.
He’s hit in the neighborhood of .285 for his career, still has some pop and to this point has been a Dodger for his entire career. Yes, he’s still a solid outfielder, but there’s a chance that, if LA can take a defensive load from him, the 34-year-old Ethier can keep going for anther eight years. He’s also under contract for this season and another two, at $18 million this season and $17.5 million per over the next two.
Ethier is exactly the kind of person the MLB Players Association wants in a DH role. He’s physically, mentally and financially healthy and can help raise the going rate for players across the board. The Dodgers should push for the full-time DH as well; other than the New York Mets, who has as much to lose with a starter going down? Reduce the risk, people.
Another candidate for the job might have been Scott Van Slyke, but he doesn’t meet the criteria set forth; he’s eligible for arbitration after 2016. No doubt Van Slyke has struggled not only to get at-bats, but to produce once he gets them. As a designated hitter, he could help secure lotto-like contracts in the future, and maybe earn some playing time with his glove.
Next: Rockies
The Colorado Rockies need to get Ben Paulsen’s bat in the lineup every single day. Much sooner rather than later.
It would be sad to make him wait until the designated hitter comes to the National League, because he could certainly make a difference in Denver. He might be one of the better hitters hardly anyone’s ever heard of. He hit .277 last season, with 11 home runs in 325 at-bats, so over a full season that translates very, very well.
Truth be told, the Rockies are another NL team that could DH by committee; DJ LeMahieu, Mark Reynolds, and Gerardo Parra could all handle the role, and it wouldn’t be a crime to give Carlos Gonzalez, the only Colorado player pulling down eight digits annually, an occasional semi-day off by letting him DH. He’d still sell tickets in Denver and across the league.
Then again, if there’s one team that ought to oppose the DH in the NL, it might be Colorado. Having Rockies pitchers, historically a group who aren’t getting much attention from fantasy baseball owners, a chance to get out of a lot of innings by facing the opposing pitcher or forcing the opposition to go to its bench early.
Next: Padres
In San Diego, the Padres best bet for the designated hitter is Matt Kemp.
Since Opening Day 2008 Kemp has failed to play in at least 150 games just once, so becoming the DH isn’t about durability or the ability to field his position. But he’s not the most fleet afoot outfielder by any stretch, and for the Padres to contend they have to have speed covering the vast expanse of outfield at Petco Park.
He brings a veteran presence to the DH position, with enough average and power to be a force well into the future. He’ll be 32 when the 2017 season opens, and he’s under contract through the 2019 season. An argument could be made that he makes far too much money to be just a hitter.
Although he’s an everyday catcher, Derek Norris might be a candidate for the job. One of the knocks on Norris is the better runners can steal on him pretty much at will. (Anybody remember the 2014 AL Wild Card game with the Kansas City Royals when Norris was with the Oakland A’s?)
Right now his average is flirting with the Mendoza line, meaning he won’t be a long-term solution anywhere, regardless of city or position, unless he picks up the pace considerably.
Next: Giants
Gerald Dempsey Posey, aka “Buster ” is among the youngest players to make this list. But the San Francisco Giants know full well the risks associated with the catching position; who knows if the Giants could have added another World Series ring in 2011 when he had the season-ending knee injury from a home-plate collision.
What we all do know is the Giants were not contenders without him. There are a lot of reasons to leave him behind the plate; five of them make up the starting rotation for the Giants. He has always handled the egos of big-time pitchers with the all-time greats, and it’s not at all a stretch to say his career trajectory is leading Posey to a plaque in Cooperstown. He has a lot of hardware, both as a player and with the Giants, that speak for his value to the team.
The big question is “how long can he continue catching and maintain offensive production?” It’s not like the Giants have glaring need at any other position; their starting eight is, day-in, day-out, as good as it gets. Unless San Francisco decided to trade Brandon Belt, there’s no way to protect Posey from the perils of catching.
Unless the designated hitter comes to the National League. If it did, the Giants do have Hunter Pence, among others, who can handle the role. But no one on the Giants needs the long-term protection, even with his huge contract, the way Buster Posey does.
Next: Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks didn’t bring in Yasmany Tomas to field the ball or throw the ball, both of which have been, shall we say, exciting in the wrong ways at times. The D-Backs brought him in to hit, and hit a lot.
There’s time in his still-budding career to make improvements defensively, so it’s not like he’s a lost cause with the glove. But with the signing of Zack Greinke came notice to all in baseball, the Diamondbacks are not in rebuilding mode. That kind of payroll commitment comes with a pledge to win now, and win big. Tomas was chosen, in part, because he is capable of hitting at an MVP level, but still takes days off against certain pitchers.
It might be easy to think of a designated hitter as someone in the Thirtysomething crowd, but the Diamondbacks have only one non-pitcher on the roster, Rickie Weeks, that fits that description. And one of the criteria for this list is someone under contract for 2017; Weeks is a free agent after the season.
Next: Top five shortstops in baseball
So while the Diamondbacks aren’t exactly candidates for “Extreme Makeover: Baseball Edition,” they do have several players who could DH. His defense landed Tomas on this list.