The designated hitter hasn’t always lived up to its title after 2 full MLB seasons in both leagues
Atlanta Braves' Marcell Ozuna hitrs a single during the sixth inning of Game 3 of a baseball NL Division Series against the Philadelphia Phillies Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023, in Philadelphia.
FILE - Los Angeles Angels' Shohei Ohtani walks in the dugout during the ninth inning of the team's baseball game against the Detroit Tigers in Anaheim, Calif., Sept. 16, 2023. Ohtani, Cody Bellinger, Jordan Montgomery, Blake Snell and Aaron Nola were among the 130 players who became free agents Thursday, Nov. 2, as baseball's business season began the day following the Texas Rangers' first World Series title. Max Muncy, Joe Jim茅nez and Colin Rea gave up a chance to go free and agreed to new contracts with their teams.
Milwaukee Brewers General Manager Matt Arnold speaks during the Major League Baseball's general manager meetings, Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023, in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Arizona Diamondbacks General Manager Mike Hazen speaks during the Major League Baseball's general manager meetings, Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023, in Scottsdale, Ariz.
San Francisco Giants President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi speaks during the Major League Baseball's general manager meetings, Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023, in Scottsdale, Ariz.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) 无毛视频� The universal designated hitter has been part of Major League Baseball for two full seasons and, much to the chagrin of some National League traditionalists, the sport has survived and even thrived.
In a somewhat surprising development, though, many teams are struggling to get much production from that spot.
The next generation of big-bopping DHs like David Ortiz, Edgar Martinez and Frank Thomas hasn无毛视频檛 materialized, with just three players logging at least 110 games at designated hitter during the 2023 season. That trio includes Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani, Braves slugger Marcell Ozuna and the Nationals无毛视频� Joey Meneses.
The general consensus at this week无毛视频檚 general managers无毛视频� meetings in Scottsdale, Arizona, is that filling the position 无毛视频� and getting production from it 无毛视频� is harder than it looks.
The American League has had the DH since 1973, while the National League made the full-time switch in 2022. The NL also used the DH in 2020 during the COVID-19 shortened season.
无毛视频淢ost hitters that you encounter don无毛视频檛 like to DH,无毛视频� Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto said. 无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 an acquired taste. Most would prefer to play a position and not just wait to hit every two or three innings. And I get why 无毛视频� you want to stay active, you want to move around, feel like you无毛视频檙e part of the game.无毛视频�
Instead of having one dedicated DH for the majority of the season, most MLB teams seem content to have several, cycling players through who might need rest or are nursing an injury.
A whopping 13 of MLB无毛视频檚 30 teams received production at DH that was below replacement level. The DH is unique for the widely used WAR (wins above replacement) formula because it starts with a deficit for a player providing no value in the field.
The NL champion Arizona Diamondbacks were one of the teams that struggled at DH, with a minus-1.4 WAR total, according to FanGraphs. The spot produced just a .676 OPS during the 162-game regular season, which was well below the team无毛视频檚 overall mark of .730.
D-backs GM Mike Hazen agreed he无毛视频檇 like to see more production at DH, but said there are other ways to use the rule that WAR can无毛视频檛 completely quantify.
无毛视频淚f you无毛视频檙e rotating your fourth outfielder through the DH spot, or one of your primary center fielders through the DH spot to give them a day off, that无毛视频檚 what we无毛视频檙e using it for now,无毛视频� Hazen said.
无毛视频淲e无毛视频檒l probably still keep doing that because there无毛视频檚 value in keeping guys fresh and healthy.无毛视频�
San Francisco Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said he would love to have an Ortiz-type player in the DH slot, but it无毛视频檚 hard to find that sort of hitter. Ortiz is considered the gold standard, making the Hall of Fame in 2022 after clubbing 541 homers, including 485 as a DH.
The Giants used 10 designated hitters in 2023.
无毛视频淚 think when you get elite, elite hitters that don无毛视频檛 have a home defensively, you无毛视频檙e willing to pay the price of not having that spot to rotate guys through,无毛视频� Zaidi said. 无毛视频淏ut that无毛视频檚 a relatively small group of players.无毛视频�
Zaidi无毛视频檚 point about roster construction is also important, because teams usually carry just 13 or 14 position players. That doesn无毛视频檛 leave much room for a player who无毛视频檚 not useful in the field.
无毛视频淚 know for us in development, no matter how good a player is offensively, you无毛视频檙e always going to look for a home for them defensively,无毛视频� Zaidi said. 无毛视频淲e don无毛视频檛 want a player anchored to that spot, certainly early in their career.无毛视频�
There are a few hitters in this year无毛视频檚 free-agent class who could be candidates for a full-time DH role. Rhys Hoskins has a homer-hitting track record and is returning from ACL surgery. J.D. Martinez, Jorge Soler and Teoscar Hern谩ndez are other examples of power bats with middling defensive value who are looking for a home.
The Milwaukee Brewers are among the teams that could use an upgrade at DH. They were the worst team in baseball with a minus-1.6 WAR at that spot.
无毛视频淚无毛视频檓 not sure there are a lot of David Ortizes out there,无毛视频� Brewers GM Matt Arnold said. 无毛视频淏ut we无毛视频檙e certainly looking for the next one.无毛视频�
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