4 NL teams hurt most without universal DH
The universal designated hitter rule is on pause for the time being.
After finally adopting it out of necessity for the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, the National League will see pitchers return to the plate this year. The universal DH was shelved for 2021 after MLB and the players' association couldn't agree on the issue. At the very least, the decision gives NL clubs some much-needed clarity as they go about building their rosters for the coming campaign.
All 15 NL clubs will have to readjust as they return to life without a DH, but let's take a look at four teams that are most hurt by the rule change.
Atlanta Braves
The Braves don't necessarily need the DH, but they'd certainly be better off with it.
The lack of a universal DH forces reigning Edgar Martinez Award winner Marcell Ozuna back into the outfield. Ozuna won a Gold Glove in 2017 and has shown flashes of competence, but he's not close to being an elite defender. The Braves will need to take his defensive shortcomings into account when building their team; to that end, Ender Inciarte could become a key bench player as a late-inning replacement if he loses his starting job to rookie Cristian Pache.
With no DH, the Braves' bench could be a strong point, and that's important under conventional NL rules. However, it also means that some powerful sluggers - including Jake Lamb, Austin Riley, Johan Camargo, and non-roster invitee Pablo Sandoval - could be squeezed for playing time.
New York Mets
The Mets are probably very angry about losing the DH, perhaps more than any other NL team. Dominic Smith is a perfect fit for the role as a natural first baseman who's blocked at that position by Pete Alonso. Instead, the Mets are being forced to shoehorn Smith into left field just to get his bat into the lineup.
Had there been a DH this year, New York would have almost certainly pushed harder for Gold Glove center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. or All-Star George Springer in free agency. Both players would have made the Mets' outfield better, but their presence also would have forced Smith into a bench role. The Mets made do by adding a couple of defense-first outfielders in Albert Almora Jr. and Kevin Pillar, both of whom can spell Smith defensively late in games. But that's also merely a patchwork solution. The Mets are still a very good team, but they'd be even better with a full-time DH.
Cincinnati Reds
The inability to utilize the DH hurts the Reds in a number of areas, most notably on defense.
Right now, the Reds are forced to play Nick Castellanos in right field. Castellanos is being paid for his bat (although he disagreed with that sentiment last year), and his consistently poor defensive numbers back that up. He'd be a perfect candidate to DH on this team while only making occasional outfield appearances. Shogo Akiyama, a superior defender to Castellanos, would likely have a starting spot in this situation.
Aristides Aquino is also affected. While he might be squeezed out of the Reds' lineup anyway due to their glut of outfielders, Aquino - like Castellanos - would be a good fit at DH, even in a platoon. If nothing else, it would give the Reds more possibilities to make use of his bat.
A DH could also help the Reds improve their infield. Shortstop remains the club's weakest position, but if Castellanos or Aquino were at DH and Akiyama was starting at least part time in the outfield, the team could consider moving Nick Senzel - a natural shortstop - back to the infield.
Washington Nationals
The Nationals lose a bit of flexibility without the DH. Kyle Schwarber, a perfect candidate for the position, will have to play left field every day. While they'll live with the defensive downgrade if he's slugging, it's probably not how they were hoping to use him.
Ryan Zimmerman, returning to action after opting out of last season, is another casualty of the return to DH-less baseball. The franchise icon isn't a full-time player anymore and has ceded first base to Josh Bell, but he could have found some extra playing time at DH against left-handers.