MLBTR continues its position-by-position look at the upcoming free agent class. Before we move on to pitching, we’ll round out the offensive group by looking at the designated hitters. Technically, of course, any position player could play DH, but the vast majority of the class was covered in one of our previous positional previews. We’ll limit this look to players who are primary designated hitters or have had at least 200 at-bats at the position this year. The players’ ages, stated in brackets, apply to the 2026 season.
Previous entries in this series: catcher, first base, second base, third base, short stop, center field, outfield corner
Top of the class
Kyle Schwarber (33)
With the exception of Shohei OhtaniSchwarber is the best free agent designated hitter in years. He becomes the first pure DH to sign a nine-figure contract after posting 56 home runs in the NL and leading the MLB with 132 runs batted in. Schwarber played in all 162 games and hit .240/.365/.563 over 724 trips to the plate.
Schwarber hit more than 38 home runs in all four seasons of the free agent contract he signed with Philadelphia. He’ll strike out a lot, but he’s one of the top five power hitters in the sport. He’s also adored in the Philly clubhouse, and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has made no secret of their desire to keep him. Schwarber is set to decline a qualifying offer and should be in line for a four-year contract that pays more than $25 million annually. There is a non-zero chance that a team will stretch to five years to push the total guarantee above $130 million.
Regular DH options
Jos Bell (33)
The always streaky Bell alternated between bad and excellent months throughout the season. He had a .730 OPS or lower in April, June and August, while posting an .860 or better in May, July and September. The end result was a .239/.326/.421 batting line with 22 home runs over 533 plate appearances. For all his inconsistency within seasons, Bell has reliably finished as a slightly above-average hitter over the past three years. He would have to sign another one-year contract.
Starling Marte (37)
After consecutive seasons of declining production, Marte enjoyed a minor resurgence in a part-time role for the Mets. He hit .270/.335/.410 over 329 plate appearances. Marte only hit seven home runs and isn’t the kind of power bat teams need as an everyday DH, but he can get 250-300 plate appearances while playing a part-time corner role in the outfield.
Andrew McCutchen (39)
Cutch has signed a series of one-year, $5 million deals with the Pirates in recent seasons. This year’s .239/.333/.367 line with 13 home runs is his worst production during his three-year second stint in Pittsburgh. McCutchen still has strong strike zone awareness, but he is no longer a threat for 25-30 home runs at this stage of his career. It seems likely he will sign another cheap one-year deal with the Bucs.
Marcell Ozuna (35)
Ozuna is the cheap alternative to Schwarber as a true everyday designated hitter. He is just one season removed from becoming one of the sport’s best offensive players. Ozuna combined for 79 home runs while hitting .289/.364/.552 between 2023 and 2024. He’s coming off a disappointing year at age 34, as he slumped to a .232/.355/.400 batting line with 21 home runs over 592 trips to the plate. It’s still an above-average offensive performance, but not great production for a player who hasn’t played a single inning on defense in two years.
The trend lines during the season were not encouraging. Ozuna was hitting .280/.426/.457 with almost as many walks as strikeouts through the end of May. For a while, it seemed like he would be one of the best rental players available at the trade deadline. He then went through a three-month stretch where he hit .185/.300/.362 over 278 plate appearances. That killed any chance of the Braves taking more than a marginal salary cut, so they kept him around for the long term. Ozuna rebounded somewhat, hitting .261 in September, but he struck out at a 32% clip and hit just one home run in the final month of the season. He will be limited to a one-year contract, which may be as much as half of the $16 million salary he collected last season.
Jorge Polanco (32)
Polanco’s contract technically includes a $6 million player option, but he’s going to decline that and hit free agency. The Mariners surprisingly re-signed him after a disappointing 2024 season. Seattle attributed the down year to a knee injury that had him playing, requiring post-season meniscus surgery. They got it right with a resurgent year from the switch-hitting infielder. Polanco hit 26 home runs and 30 doubles with a .265/.326/.495 line.
While Polanco can still hit, he will face questions about his defensive workload in 162 games. Seattle initially planned to play him at third base, believing it would be easier on his knee not to have to navigate the bag of second base. That lasted five games before renewed pain and an oblique injury led to the M’s using him as a full-time design hitter for a while. He started mixing second base work in June and played there regularly for the final three weeks of the season. He’s a good candidate for a qualifying offer, but will likely hit free agency without draft compensation. He should get at least a two-year contract and has a chance of three.
Bank bats
Wilmer Flores (34)
Flores had a strong start to the season, hitting seven home runs in April with a penchant for clutch hits. As of early May, he sported a pedestrian .245/.315/.365 batting line. Flores has made a career as a versatile defenseman who throws left-handed, but he is essentially limited to DH and first base at this point. He’s hit just .228/.278/.371 against lefties over the past two seasons and may have to sign a minor league deal.
Mitch Garver (35)
Garver logged nearly 400 innings behind the plate as Cal Raleighs backup. The Mariners signed him expecting him to be their primary designated hitter, but he hit .187/.290/.341 in 201 games over two seasons in the Pacific Northwest.
Justin Turner (41)
Turner was paid $6 million by the Cubs last season to work as the veteran right bat off the bench. He hit .219/.288/.314 in 80 games in his age-40 season and is likely looking at a minor league deal if he continues to play.
Jesse Winker (32)
Winker was guaranteed $7.5 million last offseason to re-sign with the Mets. He will likely be limited to minor league offers this winter after oblique and back injuries limited him to 26 games.
Player Options
Game Pederson (34)
Pederson will exercise a $16.5 million player option with Texas after hitting .181/.285/.328 in 306 plate appearances. The Rangers will need a huge rebound from a player who hit .275/.393/.515 with the Diamondbacks in 2024.
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