Mets Organizational Depth Chart: Designated Hitter

As we wind down the list of depth charts throughout the organization, we arrive at the one spot that didn’t exist just a few years ago, at least in the National League — designated hitter. 

Who do the Mets already have? Who could they bring in? Well, those are complicated questions. Let’s get into it.

Big League Starter

Right now, the Mets still employ Daniel Vogelbach. However, will they in less than a week when the non-tender deadline hits? Who knows. Mets’ president of baseball operations David Stearns said at the GM meetings that the team is still discussing Vogelbach’s future with the organization.

After a season where Vogelbach slashed .233/.339/.404 with 13 home runs in a little over 300 plate appearances, the answer is probably no. He saw his playing time almost completely evaporate in the final weeks of the season, and yes, there is a new manager in town, but that probably doesn’t change things much. At his best, Vogelbach provides a good on-base percentage and decent pop against right-handed pitching. That’s already a very niche skillset — he can’t field, run, or hit left-handed pitching — and the problem for him is that he was rarely at his best in 2023.

A non-tender is probably in his future. Stearns already non-tendered Vogelbach once in Milwaukee, and nothing is stopping him from doing it again in New York. 

So, what does that leave the Mets for options currently on the big league roster? There’s Mark Vientos, but he was worse than Vogelbach basically across the board. In 233 plate appearances, Vientos slashed .211/.253/.367 with nine home runs and a 30.5% strikeout rate. His OPS was barely above .600, and he doesn’t provide much in the field (but he can at least play it, unlike Vogelbach).

There is an argument that Vientos hasn’t been given a true shot to assert himself as an MLB-caliber player, often playing sporadically and not really being given a chance to get in a rhythm, but he was also never a truly high-rated prospect. He has a lot of power, but also has trouble putting the bat on the ball consistently. That was a concern as he made his way through the minors, and it’s showing up in the bigs.

Big League Depth

DJ Stewart could be an option at DH if the Mets choose to remain content. He wouldn’t be a bad option either with the power he showed last season, but who knows if he can repeat it over a full season. He has no track record to say he will.

Starling Marte could also get some DH at-bats to try to keep him healthy, but that would also involve the Mets adding an outfielder. Then, of course, there’s Pete Alonso. He’ll probably get a couple of games at DH throughout the season, but he’ll more than likely play 140, 150-plus games at first base. Francisco Álvarez is an option, and not a bad one. Omar Narváez will be back in 2024, and no catcher is behind the plate for 140 games anymore. Álvarez at DH is a way to keep his bat in the lineup on days he’s not catching.

Upper Levels Depth

It’s harder to find depth at designated hitter in the minors, because really, anyone could be depth. Just like how any hitter on the big league roster could reasonably get a start as the DH, anyone could be called up and do the same. However, usually when a minor league player comes up, teams want to get them onto the field as well. Unless it’s someone like Vientos, who the organization already knows is defensively challenged, the minor league call-up is going to play the field and give an established player a partial day off. And even with Vientos, he still had 26 starts in the field in 2023 to 34 starts at DH, so an almost even split.

Luke Ritter, Brandon McIlwain, Carlos Cortes, Jeremiah Jackson, Rowdey Jordan, Matt Rudick and JT Schwartz are all players who could make big league cameos next season if they play well in Triple-A, but as said before, will likely be asked to play the field. The depth, and really probable opening day starter is likely going to come from outside the organization.

Potential Acquisitions

There are a lot of options for the Mets at DH on the free agent market. Shohei Ohtani has to be the first name mentioned as a potential acquisition. The Mets, with Steve Cohen’s pockets, will obviously be involved. However, as of now, the report labels the Mets chances at landing Ohtani as unrealistic. Regardless, Ohtani is the best player in baseball, hands down, but also probably carries the most opportunity cost of any free agent on the market, at least when factoring in the contract he is in line to get. He is a superstar, a unicorn, and one of the biggest names in sports.

Another superstar-caliber option is, of course, Juan Soto. Not that he would play DH, but he would move Marte or Stewart into the DH spot. Soto is “100%” going to be traded, Buster Olney of ESPN said on Friday. The Mets are an obvious suitor.

Jorge Soler and Teoscar Hernández are also options that come with a lot of power upside, but also a lot of risks. Soler had maybe the best season of his career in a contract year, and might never hit that level again. Hernández has seen his OPS drop significantly each of the past two seasons, and struck out over 200 times last season with very few walks. Both Soler and Hernández, along with Soto, were looked at much more in-depth in the left field organizational depth chart.

J.D. Martinez is an intriguing option, but he is also 36. He had a nice 2023 with the Dodgers, hitting 33 home runs with a .893 OPS in just 113 games, but who knows how long he will be able to maintain that level of production. It already looked like the power was starting to fall off in 2022 when he hit just 16 home runs in 139 games with the Red Sox, but had a career renaissance in Los Angeles. It very well could have been the Dodgers devil magic at work again in 2023, and 2022 Martinez will show up again if he goes elsewhere.

The Mets could consider a reunion with Justin Turner, who had a solid 23 home runs and a .800 OPS with the Red Sox in 2023, but he will be 39 next season. Adam Duvall, Joc Pederson, Rhys Hoskins, Brandon Belt, Tommy Pham, C.J. Cron, Evan Longoria, Eddie Rosario and Garrett Cooper are all capable DH bats who are available, but none inspire much confidence.