How will the Chicago Cubs and the other NL Central Teams Use the DH in 2023?
One of the major changes in Major League Baseball last year was the Designated Hitter coming to the National League on a permanent basis. It had previously been used in all MLB ballparks during the COVID-shortened 2020 season, then not used in NL ballparks in 2021 before returning last year.
With the DH coming to the National League for good in 2022, we can analyze how different teams used the lineup spot last season, the production they received, and what they might do in the upcoming season. We can start by looking at team totals.
The Philadelphia Phillies had the most productive DH spot based on weighted runs created plus (wRC+, where 100 is league average, above 100 is better than average and below 100 is worse). The Phillies’ 132 wRC+ meant their DH spot was 32 percent better on offense than the league average hitter. The Washington Nationals had the least productive DH spot, with a 74 wRC+, or 26% below league average.
With one eye on last year and the other looking ahead to next season, here is a breakdown of each NL Central team’s use of the DH in 2022 and what to expect in 2023.
Chicago Cubs—2022 DH Usage
For the first four months of last season, first string catcher Willson Contreras served as the team’s most-used DH when he wasn’t behind the plate. This saved some wear-and-tear on Contreras’ body, as he had his fewest starts at the catcher position of any full season of his career. It also meant that nearly 35 percent of his season-long plate appearances came as a DH. Frank “Flash In the Pan” Schwindel also spent a good amount of time at the spot, as did Rafeal Ortega. This all changed when the Cubs selected Franmil Reyes off waivers in August and made him their primary DH for the rest of the season. Reyes was a below average hitter for the Cubs as a DH (.238/.302/.395, 96 wRC+) and is now a free agent.
Chicago Outlook for 2023
The Cubs’ most exciting prospect in 2022 was Matt Mervis, who crushed 36 homers and drove in 119 runs across three levels of the minor leagues while hitting .309/.379/.606. He continued to mash at the Arizona Fall League, which further raised expectations among Cubs’ prospect watchers who were hoping he would get a chance to play every day at first base for the Cubbies in 2023. Then the team went out and signed veterans Eric Hosmer and Trey Mancini and seemingly blocked Mervis at first base and DH. Fear not, Cubs fans! If Mervis continues to mash, he will get big league playing time. The FanGraphs Depth Charts expects all three players to get at least 300 plate appearances, with much of their time divided between first base and DH. Think of it as three guys sharing two spots when Mervis is on the big-league roster, with Mancini likely leading the team in DH plate appearances while also playing some outfield, as needed.
Cincinnati Reds—2022 DH Usage
Mike Moustakas led all Reds players in plate appearances at the DH spot, but he also made 21 starts at first base and 22 at third base, so he wasn’t a dedicated DH. In fact, he had the lowest percentage of his team’s DH plate appearances of any team leader in the NL. The range went from Nelson Cruz, with 75% of his team’s DH appearances to Moustakas, at just 17%.
The Reds had more players with at least 50 plate appearances at DH than any other NL team and all six of these players were above average on offense. Overall, the Reds’ 126 wRC+ from the DH spot was third in the NL, behind only the Philadelphia Phillies (mostly Bryce Harper) and Los Angeles Dodgers (mostly Justin Turner). In a disappointing 100-loss season, the Reds had success at DH.
Cincinnati Outlook for 2023
Nearly 40 years old and coming off the worst season of his career, it might be time for Joey Votto to transition from first base to DH. Because he’s been in the NL for the entirety of his long, Hall of Fame worthy career, he’s only had 121 plate appearances as DH, compared to 8316 at first base. In those 121 plate appearances as a DH, he’s hit .262/.347/.486, good for a 121 wRC+. He’ll be playing his age-39 season in 2023 and he ranked among the worst first basemen in Outs Above Average on defense last year. He’s also recovering from shoulder surgery after being limited to 91 games with a torn rotator cuff and torn biceps. These are all reasons that he should get plenty of time at the DH spot.
During the Reds Caravan kickoff in January, GM Nick Krall said the team wasn’t expecting Votto to be healthy and ready to go by the start of spring training. Based on his Instagram posts, Votto’s been working hard in between chess matches to get ready for 2023, but his 39-year-old body will have the last say on the topic.
All that being said, Reds manager David Bell gave at least 20 plate appearances at DH to 11 different players last year. If that pattern holds, Votto will be part of a mix that could include just about anybody. The FanGraphs Depth Charts have the spot primarily split between starting catcher Tyler Stephenson and outfielder Jake Fraley but, it should be noted, Stephenson had very little time at DH last year and missed two-thirds of the season with injuries.
Milwaukee Brewers—2022 DH Usage
At 35 years old and not nearly the defender he had once been, Andrew McCutchen received the lion’s share of DH plate appearances for the Brewers last year. He was a below average hitter in the role, as was Christian Yelich, who had the second-most plate appearances at DH. One bit of good news for Yelich was his health allowing him to stay in the lineup for 154 games. Ongoing back problems had limited Yelich’s playing time in previous seasons, which is one reason he played one-quarter of his games at DH in 2022. The one guy who propped up the rest of the Brewers’ DHs was Keston Hiura, who hit .277/.375/.578 in 96 plate appearances in the role, which was enough to drag the rest of the DH bats up to a 95 wRC+ overall. That’s still short of league average but better than five other NL teams.
Milwaukee Brewers Outlook for 2023
Six weeks out from the season, the DH spot in Milwaukee looks to be the domain of a mix of players that will include Jesse Winker, Keston Hiura, Christian Yelich, and, at times, catcher William Contreras when he’s not behind the plate. Winker should get a big chunk of the time against right-handed pitchers. In his career, he’s hit .289/.389/.497 (137 wRC+) against righties, but just .205/.321/.339 (87 wRC+) against lefties. Unfortunately, even though he hits right-handed, Keston Hiura has also hit better against righties (.253/.332/.508, 122 wRC+) than against lefties (.201/.283/.323, 65 wRC+), so they don’t make natural platoon partners. Should they both continue to struggle against lefties, it would open the door for Contreras, who has crushed lefties in his short career (.308/.400/.534, 158 wRC+). Yelich will also get time at DH to keep his back healthy.
Pittsburgh Pirates—2022 DH Usage
Dan Vogelbach appeared in 67 of the Pirates’ first 93 games, exclusively as a DH in the games he started, before being traded to the Mets at the All-Star break. Once he left town, the position was used by multiple players, most often by Ben Gamel, Bryan Reynolds, and Yoshi Tsutsugo. Reynolds had the best performance as a DH among the players with more than 20 plate appearances, while Gamel and Tsutsugo were horrible.
Pittsburgh Pirates Outlook for 2023
In November, the Pirates acquired Ji-Man Choi and Carlos Santana. Then they signed Andrew McCutchen in January. McCutchen has been an outfielder for most of his career, but was used more often at DH than in the outfield by the Brewers last season. All three of these players should get some time at DH this year. Choi has been well below average against left-handed pitching in his career, so he should play first base against right-handed pitching, with Santana at DH and McCutchen in the field. When a lefty is on the mound, Santana can shift to first base and McCutchen can take the DH role, both to take some pressure off his 36-year-old body and to get a younger outfielder on the field.
St. Louis Cardinals—2022 DH Usage
The Cardinals collection of DHs finished fourth in the NL with a 121 wRC+. More than one-third of their plate appearances came from Albert Pujols, who had his highest wRC+ since 2010. That goes back to his second-to-last year with the Cardinals, meaning he never had a wRC+ with the Angels that was as high as he just had with the Cardinals in his age-42 season. The vast majority of players just don’t do what Pujols did at that age. In fact, only one player has since 1960—Barry Bonds, with a 157 wRC+ a the age of 42 in his final season (see chart below).
Along with Pujols, the Cardinals used the DH spot to give some time off from playing in the field to first baseman Paul Goldschmidt and third baseman Nolan Arenado. Juan Yepez and Corey Dickerson both had more than 50 plate appearances at the spot, and rookie Nolan Gorman had 48.
St. Louis Cardinals Outlook for 2023 Of the Cardinals outfielder types, Juan Yepez is the least accomplished with the glove, so he should get time at DH if he continues to hit. Free agent signee Willson Contreras played in 113 games for the Cubs last year, 72 at catcher and 39 at DH (with two pinch-hit appearances). It will be interesting to see if the Cardinals handle him the same way considering they look to have more good options for the DH spot than the Cubs had last year. Nolan Gorman seems to be a man without a position at the moment and Jordan Walker is a young prospect who is knocking on the door. Both should see time at DH.
