Throughout the offseason the CBS Sports MLB experts will bring you a weekly Batting Around roundtable breaking down pretty much anything. The latest news, a historical question, thoughts about the future of baseball, all sorts of stuff. Last week we discussed Jordan Montgomery's future. This week we're going to tackle three veteran free-agent hitters.
Which veteran bat would you most want for 2024: Rhys Hoskins, J.D. Martinez, or Justin Turner?
R.J. Anderson: Hoskins. He's been the most productive of the trio (albeit barely) over their last three seasons, edging out Martinez by a single OPS+ point. I'll concede that there's risk that he comes back rusty after missing the season. I'll counter that both Martinez and Turner have their own risk profiles to fret about that make it easier for me to stomach that chance. Martinez's whiff rate, particularly on non-fastballs, ticked up last season; Turner, meanwhile, is entering his age-39 campaign. If the cost is even somewhat similar, give me Hoskins.
Dayn Perry: Since we're talking about 2024 and no further into the future, I'll narrowly lean Martinez. He's coming off a season in which he mashed 33 home runs in 113 games, and he backed it up by making strides in his already impressive quality-of-contact indicators. That he set career bests in average exit velocity and hard-hit rate bodes well for the season to come.
Matt Snyder: I'll go with Rhys Hoskins. Turner's age (39) scares me even though he's been pretty successful at fending off Father Time to this point and Martinez is only one year removed from a 16-homer season. Hoskins, of course, is coming off the torn ACL, but he's surely already 100%, as it's an eight-ish-month injury these days. He'll be 31 next season, making him the spring chicken of the group here. He'll be worth 30-35 homers with a 125 or so OPS+ in a normal season with the upside to get to around 40 homers. I could see the arguments for Martinez, but I like Hoskins by a nose.
Mike Axisa: I'm going to say Turner even though he's the oldest and won't hit you 30 home runs like Hoskins and Martinez will (or at least have the potential to). I just love Turner's approach and contact rates, and the fact he was still a better-than-average hitter against all pitch types (fastballs, breaking balls, offspeed) in 2023, his age-38 season. To use a cliché, Turner is a professional hitter. Hoskins and Martinez will put up gaudier power numbers, but Turner's the one I feel most comfortable with at the plate in a high-leverage situation.
