The 2024 Designated Hitter: Analyzing Replacement-Level Players

Tim Vizer-USA TODAY Sports

At last we reach the end of my annual series spotlighting the weakest positions on contenders. While still focusing upon teams that meet that loose definition of contenders (Playoff Odds of at least 9.5%), I have also incorporated our Depth Charts’ rest-of-season WAR projections into the equation for an additional perspective. Sometimes that may suggest that the team will clear the bar by a significant margin, but even so, I’ve included them here because the team’s performance at that spot is worth a look.

In the third full season of the universal DH, exactly half the teams in the majors have actually gotten 0.0 WAR or less from their DHs thus far, four are in the middle ground between 0.0 and 1.0, eight are between 1.0 and 2.0, and three are above 2.0. DHs as a group have hit .245/.321/.421 for a 109 wRC+; that last figure is up three points from last year, and seven points from the last time I did this list, via a slash line that’s virtually identical (the majors’ slugging percentage as a whole has dropped 17 points from last season).

This year, we’re seeing a greater number of teams invest more playing time in a single DH. Whereas each of the past two seasons saw three players reach the 500 plate appearance threshold as DHs, this year we’re on pace for five; similarly, 11 player are on pace to reach 400 PA as DHs, compared to eight last year. That said, many of the teams on this list are the ones that haven’t found that special someone to take the lion’s share of the plate appearances.

2024 Replacement-Level Killers: Designated Hitter

Rangers

At the outset of the season, the defending champions’ lineup featured two of the top 12 prospects from our Top 100 list, with 12th-ranked Evan Carter — who did stellar work late last year for the Rangers — in left field, and second-ranked Wyatt Langford at DH. The latter, who was chosen as the fourth pick in last year’s draft, has the speed for center field but “his feel for the position (and for playing outfield defense in general) is very poor,” wrote Eric Longenhagen in his evaluation. The apparent plan was for Langford to DH against righties and play left field (where he had 28 games of experience last year) against lefties while the lefty-swinging Carter sat, with a rotating cast of players filling the DH slot.

It hasn’t gone great, to say the least. Carter has struggled and has been on the injured list since late May due to a stress reaction in his lower back, while Langford — who himself missed three weeks in May with a hamstring strain — has played 49 games in left field (with 4 DRS!) and just 23 at DH. He’s hit just .254/.318/.384 (94 wRC+) overall, producing an 83 wRC+ in 97 plate appearances as a DH. His quality of contact is middling, and he’s struggled against sliders, though his plate discipline has been very good; his woes mainly look like the growing pains of a 22-year-old rookie. Adolis García, whose poor play overall this season landed him on the right field Killers list, has managed just a 58 wRC+ in 65 PA as a DH, with lefty Travis Jankowski (61 PA, 8 wRC+), and switch-hitter Robbie Grossman (55 PA, 80 wRC+) the other players with double-digit appearances — and little success — in the role.

With the Rangers (46-50) at best on the fringes of the Wild Card race, a move here is unlikely; the hope is that Carter returns near the end of this month, which could in theory give Langford more time to settle in at DH.

Guardians

For our Positional Power Rankings, we projected Kyle Manzardo to get the plurality of the Guardians’ reps at first base, with Josh Naylor getting far more time at DH than any other Cleveland player. The 23-year-old Manzardo, who missed our Top 100 list, was sent to Triple-A Columbus despite a strong spring, so Naylor has taken just 30 plate appearances here. Instead, José Ramírez leads the team with 97 PA as a DH, though he’s produced just a 39 wRC+ in that role. Manzardo finally got a look when Steven Kwan went down with a hamstring strain in early May, but hit just .207/.241/.329 (60 wRC+) in 87 PA overall (76 as a DH) before being shuttled back to Columbus.

Though it would make sense to platoon Yoshida with righty Rob Refsnyder, that leaves right fielder Wilyer Abreu similarly exposed to lefties. The White Sox’s Tommy Pham, a rental, would work as a platoon option who could spot in the outfield when the team wishes to rotate other players through the position. A reunion with Justin Turner, who fared much better in Boston than he has in Toronto, also makes some sense, particularly if the Blue Jays are willing to eat some of his remaining salary.

Red Sox

After playing 88 games last year in left field, albeit with dreadful metrics (some of which may owe to the complexities of the Green Monster), Masataka Yoshida has been limited to a single defensive inning this year. He also missed six weeks due to a left thumb sprain, but when available, he’s hit a meager .260/.326/.370 (95 wRC+), and where he produced a 102 wRC+ in 144 plate appearances against lefties last year, he’s crashed to a 27 wRC+ in 46 PA against them this year.

While it’s fair to wonder if David Ortiz could come out of retirement and hit the ball harder than Yoshida, things aren’t that simple for the Red Sox, who are paying Yoshida $18 million annually through 2027 and who aren’t exactly awash in productive hitters; as it is, they’ve got a Killer at first base in Dominic Smith while Triston Casas recovers from a fractured rib. Though it would make sense to platoon Yoshida with righty Rob Refsnyder, that leaves right fielder Wilyer Abreu similarly exposed to lefties.

Royals

From the start of the season until late June, the Royals gave Nelson Velázquez 151 plate appearances…