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.
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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.