Arizona Diamondbacks 2024 Player Review: Joc Pederson

Half of Arizona's DH platoon had a major resurgence at the plate in 2024.

Sep 10, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks designated hitter Joc Pederson (3) hits a solo home run against the Texas Rangers in the first inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images / Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

This article is part of a series chronicling the individual seasons of players who appeared for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2024.

Reviews for players who still have rookie eligibility for 2025 will appear in our prospect season reviews. Players are presented in the reverse order of their aWAR, an average of Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs WAR.

DH/OF Joc Pederson

2024 Contract status: one-year, $9.5 million with $14 million mutual option, $3 million buyout

Joc Pederson 2024 and career statistics / Alex D'Agostino | Diamondbacks On SI

Ahead of the 2024 season, plenty of names had been thrown around to fill the Arizona Diamondbacks' hole at designated hitter. Names like J.D. Martinez, Jorge Soler and Justin Turner swirled around the speculation channels.

Instead, to the dismay of some (but in line with this site's analysis), general manager Mike Hazen elected to go bargain-hunting to solidify the DH.

In need of a big power bat, Hazen signed left-handed power hitter Joc Pederson to a relatively team-friendly one-year deal, worth $9.5 million in base (up to $12.5 million), with a $14 million 2025 mutual option.

Considering the lefty had earned $19.65 million on a Qualifying Offer from the San Francisco Giants the year prior, it was a steal.

But it didn't appear so at first glance. Pederson had put forward a lackluster 2023 season, hitting just .235 with 15 home runs. He also spent plenty of innings playing the outfield, posting -5 Defensive Runs Saved.

But the D-backs signed Pederson with a different plan: protect the lefty from southpaw pitching, and keep him off the field.

They signed outfielder Randal Grichuk to an extremely team-friendly deal to take care of left-hand pitching, and kept the outfield lineup to a rotation of their best defenders.

With those parameters set, Pederson truly came alive at the plate, putting up his highest-ever OPS (.908), and the highest on-base percentage of his career (.393) by 40 full points.

Pederson's season began hot. On Opening Day, he went 4-for-4 with a double and an RBI. The next day he had two walks in as many plate appearances.

However, his first full month of action with the D-backs did see a return to a lower batting average (.231 in April), but he still slugged at a high rate with five doubles and two homers, and walked 11 times against 13 strikeouts.

In May, the veteran was brilliant, slashing .324/.377/.592, with four doubles and five homers. He had six multi-hit games, including a 3-for-3 night against the Detroit Tigers on May 19.

June saw a dip in both his average and slug, but he still knocked in 14 runs and homered three times. Even when not collecting hits, he was making consistent, solid contact, and put up quality at-bats across the board.

In July, he managed an incredible .688 monthly slug, with two doubles, a triple, five homers and 9 walks against only 13 strikeouts.

His average began to rise again, and he carried that momentum into a second straight excellent month in August. He smashed six homers with 16 RBI, but what was most impressive was his ability to work counts and get on base.

His August OBP was an absolutely stunning .467. Yes, his excellent .294 average for the month helped that, but he also worked an eye-popping 17 walks. It felt as if there was simply no way to catch Pederson napping at the plate, and he rarely chased or whiffed.

Unfortunately, as with much of the rest of the club, he slumped to end the year, hitting just .224 and slugging .367, though he still managed a relatively good OBP (.321).

Prior to the season, there were signs that Pederson was still a better hitter than his 2023 numbers might have shown.

His underlying metrics, xStats, exit velocity and hard-hit/barrel rates were all amongst the league's best, and his time with the D-backs saw those factors become raw results.

In 2024, he was worth +32 batting run value, a 95th percentile number. His Baseball Savant page is a sea of red, ranking in the top 10% of MLB in expected wOBA (weighted on-base average), expected slug, average exit velocity and walk rate. He was worth 2.9 average WAR, and an incredible 151 wRC+, 51% above average.

Now, much of that can be attributed to his situational use. He was mostly protected from left-hand pitching; his OPS against righties was a stunning .923. That said, he was still relatively serviceable against southpaws, albeit in a tiny sample size.

Though only getting 42 plate appearances all year against left-handers, Pederson managed a 124 wRC+ (24% above average) and a .749 OPS off them. Granted, his average was a measly .219, and his strikeout rate spiked above 42%, but he did manage a .405 OBP in those few plate appearances.

Thankfully, the addition of and solid year from Grichuk, and the lack of any defensive innings played, allowed Pederson to simply do what he does best: mash right-handed pitching and destroy the baseball, to the tune of 23 homers and a .515 season slug.

And it's not like Pederson was all that limited, either. His career-high .275 average came on his most plate appearances (449) since 2021. His immense offensive volume was anything but a product of a smaller sample size.

But it was more than just high production from the DH spot in the three-hole. Perhaps unexpectedly, Pederson merged seamlessly with Arizona's clubhouse and coaching staff, and became one of the more steady veteran presences for the D-backs, even contributing to sophomore stud Corbin Carroll's emergence from his deep slump.

On the whole, it was about as good a season as anyone could have hoped for from the DH position. Hazen's acquisitions totaled just a combined $14.5 million, and Pederson's major surge helped Arizona's DH platoon rank third in the National League, behind just the Dodgers and Braves.

2025 Outlook

2025 Contract status: Free Agent

Pederson declined his end of the mutual option in his contract, and is now officially a free agent. It's not unlikely that he's looking for a more full-time playing role, and will have an opportunity to cash in on his brilliant offensive year.

As Diamondbacks On SI's Jack Sommers laid out this month, the D-backs would be wise to bring him back, as replicating his production will be a difficult ask, and a power-hitting DH is something Arizona will need again in 2025.

It could be difficult to ward off large offers, but Pederson did appear to enjoy his time with the D-backs. With Arizona's provision to avoid right-handed pitching, a return to the desert could be in Pederson's best interest, though it will cost more than the $14 million option.

Sure, he's almost certainly due for some regression at the plate, but all signs still point to the veteran still being a valuable slugging DH next season. A return to the D-backs would very likely be worth the price tag.

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