Ranking Shohei Ohtani and Top 10 Power Hitters of 2023-24 MLB Free-Agent Class
Even with his pitching career put on hold following elbow surgery, Shohei Ohtani is still the biggest name on the MLB free-agent market this winter.
For teams looking to add a power bat this winter, he's far and away the biggest prize, but he's not the only upcoming free agent capable of launching balls into the stands.
We've ranked the top 10 power hitters of the upcoming free-agent class. Players are ranked solely on expected power production, so things like contact ability, defensive value, speed and earning power were not factors.
Let's start with some honorable mentions who just missed the cut.
Honorable Mentions
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These players didn't crack our top 10, but they could still be a major factor in a team's 2024 offense.
Brandon Belt (35): Belt had a 136 OPS+ with 23 doubles, 19 home runs and 43 RBI in 103 games playing primarily designated hitter for the Toronto Blue Jays. He had a career-high 29 home runs in 2021—the only time in his career he has topped 20 long balls.
Jeimer Candelario (29): After getting non-tendered by the Detroit Tigers to begin last offseason, Candelario inked a one-year, $5 million deal with the Washington Nationals and turned himself into a valuable trade chip. He has been more of a doubles threat than a true power hitter in his career, but he did post a 119 OPS+ with 22 home runs in 2023.
C.J. Cron (33): An All-Star in 2022 when he had a 29-homer, 102-RBI season with the Colorado Rockies, Cron played just 71 games this year while battling back issues. He hit .248/.295/.434 with 12 home runs in 278 plate appearances when healthy.
Joey Gallo (29): Still only 29 years old and two years removed from a 4.7-WAR season in 2021, Gallo is still in his prime, and his 52.9 percent hard-hit rate speaks to the damage he can still do when he connects. That said, a .177 average and 42.8 percent strikeout rate limits his overall impact.
Randal Grichuk (32): With a 101 OPS+ and 27 home runs per 162 games over his 10-year career, Grichuk will be a sneaky low-cost target this offseason for teams looking to add a right-handed power bat.
Joc Pederson (31): Pederson parlayed a 146 OPS+ and 23 home runs during the 2022 season into a qualifying offer last offseason. Those numbers dipped to a 111 OPS+ and 15 home runs this year while he played on a one-year, $19.7 million deal.
Hunter Renfroe (31): Renfroe posted his sixth 20-homer season in the last seven years in 2023, with the lone exception being the abridged 2020 campaign. He will likely need to accept a pay cut from the one-year, $11.9 million contract he signed last offseason.
Gary Sánchez (30): The San Diego Padres claimed Sánchez off waivers from the New York Mets in May, and he went on to log a 116 OPS+ with 19 home runs in 260 plate appearances. The 30-year-old has averaged 38 home runs per 162 games in his nine-year career.
Carlos Santana (37): Santana posted a 109 OPS+ with 11 home runs in 52 games after joining the Milwaukee Brewers at the deadline, and he reached the 300-homer mark in his career with a 23-homer, 86-RBI season overall. How much does he have left in the tank?
10. OF Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
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Age: 30
Outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. joined the Arizona Diamondbacks last offseason in the same trade with the Toronto Blue Jays that brought them young catcher Gabriel Moreno in exchange for outfielder Daulton Varsho.
He hit .261/.309/.463 for a 108 OPS+ with 35 doubles, 24 home runs and 82 RBI in 145 games to earn his first All-Star selection, and he made consistent quality contact, finishing in the 77th percentile in hard-hit rate.
He logged an .830 OPS with 15 home runs and a .515 slugging percentage at home, and a reunion with the D-backs could make sense for both sides this winter.
9. C/DH Mitch Garver
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Age: 32
A ninth-round pick in the 2013 draft out of the University of New Mexico, Mitch Garver was a late-bloomer in the Minnesota Twins farm system.
After making his MLB debut in 2017 and carving out a part-time role the following year, he was one of the biggest breakout stars of the 2019 season, posting a gaudy 157 OPS+ and 31 home runs in his age-28 season to win AL Silver Slugger honors.
He was traded to the Texas Rangers prior to the 2022 season, and after an injury-plagued campaign last year he returned with a 134 OPS+ and 19 home runs in 344 plate appearances this year splitting his time between backing up Jonah Heim behind the plate and serving as designated hitter.
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8. OF Adam Duvall
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Age: 35
Adam Duvall has three 30-homer seasons on his resume, including a 38-homer, 113-RBI campaign with the Miami Marlins and Atlanta Braves during the 2021 season when he won a World Series ring.
He hit .455/.514/1.030 with four home runs and 14 RBI through eight games in 2023 before suffering a fractured wrist that cost him two months, and he finished with a 119 OPS+ and 21 home runs in 92 games.
The one-year, $7 million deal that he signed with the Boston Red Sox last offseason is a reasonable expectation for his earning power once again this winter, and his ability to handle center field helps add to his appeal.
7. 3B Matt Chapman
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Age: 30
Third baseman Matt Chapman exploded out of the gates in 2023, hitting .384/.465/.687 with 15 doubles, five home runs and 21 RBI in 27 games during the first month of the season.
He finished with a 108 OPS+ while tallying 39 doubles, 17 home runs and 54 RBI, and he has averaged 29 home runs and 80 RBI per 162 games in his career, including a 36-homer season while he was with the Oakland Athletics in 2019.
His 17 home runs this season don't exactly jump off the page, but he ranked among the MLB leaders in average exit velocity (98th percentile), barrel rate (98th percentile) and hard-hit rate (100th percentile), and that is a great indication of his potential for future production.
6. OF Teoscar Hernández
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Age: 31
Since his breakout season in 2018, outfielder Teoscar Hernández ranks 23rd in the majors with 147 home runs, and he has a 118 OPS+ in 3,002 plate appearances during that six-year span.
The two-time Silver Slugger winner got off to a slow start in his first season with the Seattle Mariners, but he caught fire in August, hitting .365/.396/.654 with nine doubles, seven home runs and 22 RBI in 26 games.
He has consistently produced elite exit velocity numbers throughout his career, and at 31 years old, he should have no problem exceeding the three-year, $43.5 million deal that Mitch Haniger inked last offseason.
5. DH J.D. Martinez
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Age: 36
After Justin Turner departed in free agency, the Los Angeles Dodgers signed J.D. Martinez to a one-year, $10 million deal to fill the void in the middle of the lineup and as the team's primary designated hitter.
The veteran slugger had just 16 home runs during the 2022 season, but he bounced back to hit .271/.321/.572 for a 134 OPS+ with 33 home runs and 103 RBI while earning the starting nod at designated hitter in the All-Star Game.
His hard-hit rate (55.1 percent) and average exit velocity (93.4 mph) were both career highs since those metrics were first tracked in 2015, and while his age will likely limit him to another one-year deal, he can still be an impact middle-of-the-order bat in 2024.
4. 1B Rhys Hoskins
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Age: 30
First baseman Rhys Hoskins has been a consistent middle-of-the-order slugger for the Philadelphia Phillies since breaking into the majors with 18 home runs in 50 games as a rookie during the 2017 season.
He logged a 123 OPS+ with 30 home runs while helping the Phillies reach the World Series in 2022, but a torn ACL during spring training cost him the entire 2023 season, and now he hits the open market as an intriguing question mark.
His best approach might be to sign a one-year, prove-it deal to show he is healthy, and with Bryce Harper shifting to first base this season there is a good chance he will be headed elsewhere for the 2024 season.
3. 1B/OF Cody Bellinger
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Age: 28
At his peak, Cody Bellinger was one of the best players in baseball, hitting .305/.406/.629 for a 167 OPS+ with 34 doubles, 47 home runs and 115 RBI in an 8.6-WAR season to win NL MVP honors in 2018.
However, his production dipped in the years that followed, and the Los Angeles Dodgers chose to non-tender him ahead of his final year of arbitration eligibility last winter.
The Chicago Cubs scooped him up on a one-year, $12.5 million deal that includes a matching $12.5 player option and $5 million buyout for 2024, and turning down that option will be a no-brainer after he hit .307/.356/.525 with 29 doubles, 26 home runs, 97 RBI and 20 steals in a huge bounce-back performance.
2. OF Jorge Soler
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Age: 31
Jorge Soler has a $9 million player option for the 2024 season, and declining that in favor of testing the free agency waters will be an easy decision after an All-Star campaign in his second year with the Miami Marlins.
The 6'4", 235-pound slugger posted a 128 OPS+ with 36 home runs in 580 plate appearances, and while consistency has been an issue at times in his career, he has always had light-tower power.
Huge performances in May (.982 OPS, 12 HR) and August (.913 OPS, 10 HR) showed he is capable of carrying a lineup for stretches when he is swinging a hot bat.
1. DH Shohei Ohtani
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Age: 29
Shohei Ohtani played his final game of the 2023 season on Sept. 3, yet he still finished with an AL-leading 44 home runs while hitting .304/.412/.654 and posting a 184 OPS+ and 325 total bases.
Elbow surgery will keep him off the mound in 2024, but he is still an MVP-caliber player simply on the strength of his offensive game, and he was a 6.0-WAR player offensively.
His 14.5 at-bats per home run for his career would rank 13th in MLB history if he had the 3,000 plate appearances needed to qualify for the leaderboard, and whatever team opens their checkbooks to sign him will completely transform the offense.
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