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2023 First Baseman and Designated Hitter Rankings

Franmil Reyes

Franmil Reyes

Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

Up this week are my mostly-for-fun 2023 player rankings. I’ve done my best to list players where they’ll be 20-game eligible next year, and the free agents-to-be are listed without teams. Players with options for next year are still listed with their current teams if those options have a legitimate chance of being exercised. Those players are noted with asterisks.

Click to see other other preliminary 2023 rankings:

Top 300 | SP | RP | OF | 1B | 2B | SS | 3B | C | DH

First Baseman and Designated Hitter rankings

2023 First basemen Team 2022 July
1 Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Blue Jays 1 1
2 Freddie Freeman Dodgers 2 2
3 Pete Alonso Mets 4 4
4 Paul Goldschmidt Cardinals 5 3
DH 1 Shohei Ohtani Angels DH 1 DH 1
5 Matt Olson Braves 3 5
6 Josh Bell 7 6
7 Rhys Hoskins Phillies 6 8
8 Andrew Vaughn White Sox n/a 16
9 C.J. Cron Rockies 9 7
10 Jose Abreu 8 9
DH 2 Franmil Reyes Guardians DH 2 34 OF
11 Ty France Mariners 18 12
12 Anthony Rizzo Yankees* 17 10
13 Luis Arraez Twins n/a 15
14 Vinnie Pasquantino Royals 60 26
15 DJ LeMahieu Yankees 13 14
16 Ryan Mountcastle Orioles 11 20
17 Jake Cronenworth Padres 10 13
DH 3 Nelson Cruz Nationals* DH 3 DH 2
18 Alex Kirilloff Twins 20 21
19 Trey Mancini 23 19
20 Josh Naylor Guardians n/a 28
21 Jared Walsh Angels 16 17
22 Nathaniel Lowe Rangers 19 22
23 Rowdy Tellez Brewers 26 25
24 Spencer Torkelson Tigers 25 36
25 Luke Voit Padres 22 31
DH 4 Edwin Rios Dodgers 41 67
26 Joey Votto Reds 12 18
DH 5 Mitch Garver Rangers 7 C 33 C
27 Brandon Belt 21 30
28 Bobby Dalbec Red Sox 15 32
29 Garrett Cooper Marlins n/a 27
30 Eric Hosmer Padres* 28 29
31 Christian Walker Diamondbacks 44 24
32 Connor Joe Rockies n/a 33
33 Jurickson Profar Padres* 45 34
34 Jose Miranda Twins n/a 60
35 Nick Pratto Royals 36 65
36 Wilmer Flores 39 41
DH 6 Matt Carpenter NR 57 2B
37 Yandy Díaz Rays 38 53
38 Jesus Aguilar 33 43
39 Keston Hiura Brewers 42 48
40 Triston Casas Red Sox 52 72
41 Ji-Man Choi Rays 59 50
42 Yuli Gurriel 29 38
43 Franchy Cordero Red Sox n/a 46
44 Hunter Dozier Royals n/a 56
DH 7 Miguel Cabrera Tigers 48 55
45 Carlos Santana 46 61
46 Miguel Sano Twins* 31 74
47 Mike Moustakas Reds n/a 57
48 Darin Ruf Giants 32 47
49 Seth Brown Athletics n/a 45
50 Dominic Smith Mets n/a 66
51 Cavan Biggio Blue Jays n/a 51
52 Owen Miller Guardians n/a 52
53 Harold Castro Tigers n/a 69
54 Frank Schwindel Cubs 27 58
DH 8 Darick Hall Phillies NR NR
DH 9 Seth Beer Diamondbacks DH 5 DH4
55 Colin Moran 35 73
56 Spencer Horwitz Blue Jays NR NR
57 Alfonso Rivas Cubs n/a 71
DH 10 Daniel Vogelbach Pirates 51 76
DH 11 Yermin Mercedes Giants DH 8 NR
58 Jordan Díaz Athletics NR NR
59 Michael Chavis Pirates n/a 75
60 Evan White Mariners NR NR

  • I have 11 designated hitters listed here, though not all will necessarily be locked into that spot. Franmil Reyes has made 11 outfielder appearances this season and he has a decent chance of gaining 20-game eligibility. Matt Carpenter might also wind up making enough starts at a position to avoid the DH fate, though that would probably necessitate an IL stint for one of the infielders ahead of him in New York.

  • Vinnie Pasquantino is off to a .203/.313/.347 start in 20 major league games, but his exit velocity numbers are far, far better. In fact, he has the fourth-best average exit velocity (95 mph) and 37th-best barrel rate (13.8%) of the 418 major leaguers with at least 50 batted-ball events. He’s a strong 14th here for 2023.

  • The Tigers just sent down Spencer Torkelson, something they would have been justified in doing a couple of months ago. I don’t think there are any fatal flaws here, though his star potential seems blunted at the moment. For what it’s worth, Statcast gave him an xBA of .235 and xSLG of .392, which were nice improvements on his actual marks of .197 and .295. His contact numbers and exit velocities were both pretty good for a 22-year-old with only one season of minor league experience. I don’t think he’ll bust out as a fantasy stud next year, but I’m guessing that he will have a little mixed-league value.