Joc Pederson's early spring success proves the Rangers' DH overhaul is on right track

Last year the Texas Rangers got terrible production from the DH spot. Determine to not repeat the past, the team added Joc Pederson to fill that much needed hole in their lineup.

The 32-year-old is coming off one of the best seasons of his career with the Arizona Diamondbacks setting career highs in batting average, OPS, and a 12.2% walk rate, which was among the top 6% in the league. Since the start of the 2022 season, he's slashed .262/.365/.485 — good for a 137 OPS+ — playing for the Diamondbacks and Giants.

Fast forward to Monday's Cactus League spring training game against the Chicago White Sox. In his second at-bat, Pederson capped off a nine run first inning taking a 1-1 fastball opposite field for his first home run of the spring. An early sign of things to come from in 2025.

Joc Pederson lifts one out the other way to make it a 9-run first inning for the @Rangers 😳 #SpringTraining pic.twitter.com/ibb62jZVst
— MLB (@MLB) February 24, 2025

Sure, it's only one home run in an insignificant spring training game but on a deeper level it's a sign to the organization and its fanbase that their plan will be successful.

In 2024, the Rangers' designated hitters posted a .204/.263/.322 slash line, with a .585 OPS, 15 home runs, 65 RBIs, and a -2.7 WAR. As a group, they ranked second-worst in MLB in WAR and batting average, and last in OBP, slugging, and OPS. By comparison, Pederson alone finished the season with a 2.9 WAR, hit seven more home runs and just one fewer RBI than the entire Rangers' DH platoon.

This year, Pederson is projected to hit at least 20 home runs, drive in a minimum of 60 runs and match his WAR production from his tenure with Arizona. Combine that with other candidates expected to fill in from time-to-time, it's not unrealistic to expect at least 40 home runs and 80 RBI's alone from the DH spot.

That would transform the Rangers' DH production from one of the worst in the league to top five, making it one of the league's best positional upgrades from 2024 to 2025. Mix that in with the remainder of the lineup, the Rangers have a strong case to be among the league's best offensive teams this season.

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