MLB Rumors: Joc Pederson, Diamondbacks 'Very Close' to Contract in Free Agency

After spending the last two seasons with the San Francisco Giants, Joc Pederson could be staying in the National League West in 2024.

According to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic, Pederson and the reigning NL champion Arizona Diamondbacks are "very close" to reaching a deal.

ESPN's Buster Olney previously reported the two sides had been involved in talks.

The Diamondbacks haven't swung for the fences this offseason after their surprise run to the World Series last season, but they've already made moves to improve their roster for 2024.

They acquired Eugenio Suárez in a trade with the Seattle Mariners to provide more power to the lineup. They also signed Eduardo Rodriguez in free agency to add more quality depth in the starting rotation.

Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is currently penciled in as Arizona's starting designated hitter. He had an underwhelming 2023 after being acquired in an offseason trade with the Toronto Blue Jays. The 30-year-old hit .261/.309/.463 with 24 homers and 82 RBI in 145 games.

Gurriel's 2.1 FanGraphs wins above replacement ranked sixth out of 14 qualified DHs.

Pederson is also coming off a lukewarm season with the Giants. He had a .235/.348/.416 slash line with 15 homers and 51 RBI in 121 games. He didn't have enough plate appearances to qualify for the season-long leaderboards, but his 0.6 WAR was tied for 22nd out of 30 designated hitters with at least 400 plate appearances.

Assuming better injury luck for Pederson next season, he could easily get back to hitting like he did in 2022 with a .274/.353/.521 slash line and 23 homers in 134 games.

Everyone in the NL West right now looks to be playing for second place behind the Los Angeles Dodgers. Arizona's activity this offseason at least suggests it wants to solidify its spot to get back to the postseason again.

Pederson wouldn't dramatically shift the standings in the D-Backs' favor, but he would give them another quality depth piece that manager Torey Lovullo can use against right-handed pitching.