When you think about the designated hitter, you think about home runs, home runs, and home runs. The position was invented to add more home runs to the game, and though the Yankees have had some successful DHs in the past, 2016 was a bad year for it. While offense isn’t what it was at the height of the steroid era, there are still power hitters that fit the role of the designated hitter. It could be time for the Yankees to make a change in 2017 and embrace that past.
As the team’s primary designated hitter this year, A-Rod could only contribute a 55 wRC+ before Carlos Beltran and Gary Sanchez entered the picture and offered some successful reps at the position.