Joc PedersonMegan Briggs/Getty Images
2024 Stats: 132 G, 449 PA, 23 HR, 7 SB, .275 AVG, .393 OBP, .515 SLG
Why He’s Underrated
Yeah, the Diamondbacks were onto something with their platoon hitters this year.
Like Grichuk, they ensured that the lefty-batting Joc Pederson mostly had the platoon advantage against right-handed pitching. It’s a role for which he’s always been well suited, but he really went off on righties this year.
His wRC+ against righties landed at 154 by the end of the year. That wasn’t just good. It was “in between Yordan Alvarez and Freddie Freeman” good.
MLB @MLB
Joc Pederson wants Joctober 🐍
The @Dbacks take the early lead. pic.twitter.com/nBiDvoF7C9
Pederson’s track record alone makes it hard to chalk this up to pure luck. So, too, do his underlying metrics. His .378 xwOBA, for example, was the best of his career and slightly ahead of Gunnar Henderson among all hitters.
There isn’t a ton of work for platoon-hitting DHs out there. But it helps that, as with batters, most pitchers are right-handed. As such, any team with a lineup that leans right-handed should have its eye on Pederson.
Prediction: Signs with Toronto Blue Jays for 2 years, $30 million
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