Joc Pederson

Position: DH/OF, B/T: L/L

Age: 31 (04/21/1992)

2023 Traditional Stats: 121 G, 425 PA, .235/.348/.416/.764, 15 HR, 51 RBI, 14 2B, 57 BB, 89 SO

2023 Advanced Stats: 111 wRC+, 20.9% SO%, 13.4% BB%, .268 BABIP, .368 xwOBA, 0.6 fWAR, 0.6 bWAR

RUNDOWN

The Dodgers selected Joc Pederson in the 11th round of the 2010 MLB draft. He soon made his major league in 2014 and became an everyday outfielder for the team during his tenure through the 2020 season. He signed a one-year deal with the Cubs in 2021 but was flipped to the Braves at the deadline, earning consecutive World Series rings.

After producing his second All-Star season in 2022, Pederson accepted the San Francisco Giants’ qualifying offer to return to the Bay Area for 2023. He began the season as the primary designated hitter for the Giants, but landed on the injured list twice during the season: once in May with wrist inflammation and another time in June with a hand contusion.

A lifetime .237/.336/.464/.800 hitter, Pederson has always been a power hitter first. His exit velocity took a slight dip from 2022, going from 93.1 to 92.1, but his maxEV was the highest of his career at 116.6. His hard-hit percentage was also the highest of Pederson’s career in 2023 at 52.2%.

While Pederson can play the corner outfield positions, he ranked in the bottom percentiles in both range and arm value but was in the 61st percentile in arm strength at 86.6 mph. He would make an excellent candidate for a team looking for a full-time designated hitter. In 2023, the lefty was in the 90th percentile in xwOBA (.366), 82nd percentile in xSLG (.481), 91st percentile in average exit velocity (92.1), 96th percentile in hard-hit percentage (52.2%) and 79th percentile in barrel percentage (12.1%).

His chase rate, whiff rate and strikeout rate were all league average, categories Pederson used to be near the bottom of the league at.

CONTRACT

Fangraph‘s crowd-sourced projections have Pederson netting a two-year deal at $12 million a year. With Cody Bellinger and Matt Chapman leading the pack of the higher-priced power bats still available, a one-year deal, two, max, for Pederson makes sense.

Comparable to Rhys Hoskins, Brandon Belt and Adam Duvall, none of these players have signed yet. All project as designated hitters and should command similar deals to Pederson.

RECOMMENDATION

The free-agent market for designated hitters is still healthy. While more expensive options like Shohei Ohtani and Cody Bellinger wouldn’t be high on the Mets’ radar, a player like Pederson could make sense.

Daniel Vogelbach acted as the Mets’ most “consistent” DH in 2023, but could never get things started. Pederson would be a significant upgrade from Vogelbach, especially because he can play the field if needed.

The Mets would likely only offer Pederson a one-year deal.