Making the Grade: Ranking Designated Hitters in the AL Central

 Nick Swisher is back for the Cleveland Indians, but where does he rank among other designated hitters in the AL Central?

Kings of the strikeout, they are. While an undeniably talented bunch, the designated hitters who inhabit the AL Central are certainly prone to big whiffs — and have proven as much in the early part of this season.

On top of all the strikeouts, the designated hitter position (like right field) brings with it a number of questions — health and production alike.

Nick Swisher is finally off the shelf for the Cleveland Indians after undergoing offseason knee surgery on both knees and last year’s AL MVP runner-up Victor Martinez is struggling to return to full strength after injuring his knee this spring. Royals’ designated hitter Kendrys Morales has started strong, but has dealt with his share of production struggles over the last two seasons and Twins’ hitter Kennys Vargas is struggling to adapt to the speed of the big league game. The most reliable, perhaps, is division newcomer Adam LaRoche, who has spent the last several seasons producing in the National League as a member of the Washington Nationals.

All the questions in mind, however, this group projects to field some of the best designated hitters in the game.

This piece highlights those hitters who occupy the division and ranks them, from 1-5, in reverse order from least productive to most productive.

Next: No. 5

No. 5: Kennys Vargas, Minnesota Twins

Apr 13, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Twins designated hitter Kennys Vargas (19) hits a single in the fourth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

At one time, it looked like it wouldn’t be long before Kennys Vargas inched his way toward the top of this list.

Vargas was a .288 hitter across nearly six minor league seasons, and was so highly touted he skipped Triple-A altogether on his way to the big leagues. In parts of six minor league seasons, Vargas clubbed 59 home runs and was off-the-charts as a hitter. He drove in runs at an astounding clip, producing 93 RBIs in just 125 games in Single-A in 2013.

But the game has caught up with him, as it seems he may have progressed too quickly.

Only in his second season in the big leagues, Vargas has posted a career .261 batting average and clubbed 11 home runs in just 73 games. His strikeout-to-walk ratio (63-12) is putrid, but should only improve with additional exposure to major league pitching.

While Vargas was swinging and missing at just 17 percent of fastballs last season, Vargas has whiffed on 32 percent of similar offerings in 2015. He is mired in a dreadful slump and he’s been benched on a number of occasions by first-year manager Paul Molitor already this season.

Vargas is not the prototypical designated hitter who is going to hit for power and drive in a large number of runs. Thus far this season, the young switch-hitter is hitting just .224/.272/.316 while he’s driven in five runs with two home runs. He is predominantly a singles hitter which suggests the Twins might be better served finding an alternate position for him.

As this first month of the season has progressed, it has become a fair question whether or not Vargas even deserves to be in the lineup.

He’s been that bad.

Next: No. 4

No. 4: Nick Swisher, Cleveland Indians

Jul 11, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Indians designated hitter Nick Swisher (33) celebrates after hitting a two run home run during the fifth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Nick Swisher has not been the player the Indians paid leading up to the 2013 season.

Plagued by a number of injuries, including the knee surgeries that have kept him out of the lineup until today, Swisher hit just .208/.278/.331 last season for the Tribe. His power was almost completely sapped, as he hit just eight home runs over 97 games after hitting 20-plus round-trippers in each of the previous nine seasons.

But he’s back now. And if his numbers at Triple-A are any indication, Swisher is healthier now than he’s been since joining the Tribe.

Swisher hit .375 in six games with the Columbus Clippers, homering once and clubbing two doubles to go along with five RBIs. He seemed to be seeing the ball incredibly well and, while the strikeouts will certainly come, the Indians are hopeful they can rely on Swisher to return to the lineup and help share the load with the likes of Jason Kipnis and Michael Brantley.

While it is Swisher who is highlighted here, Indians’ manager Terry Francona has some tough decisions on the horizon. He now has four players – Swisher, David Murphy, Ryan Raburn and Brandon Moss – who will shuffle between right field and designated hitter. Raburn has been red hot and has absolutely tortured opposing lefties in a platoon role with Murphy while Moss leads the team in RBIs.

Swisher has to assert himself in the early going if he is going to maintain regular at-bats in a crowded Tribe lineup.

Next: No. 3

No. 3: Kendrys Morales, Kansas City Royals

Apr 28, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Kansas City Royals designated hitter Kendrys Morales (25) hits a three-run home run during the seventh inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

The Kansas City Royals have been red hot to start the season thanks in large part to the bat of Kendrys Morales.

After letting longtime designated hitter Billy Butler walk in free agency this offseason, the Royals went out and signed Morales, who was coming off a poor season split between Minnesota and Seattle.

Morales has responded by hitting .314/.364/.480 through the first month of the season, clubbing three home runs and driving in seven RBIs. While he is unlikely to continue that type of production throughout the duration of a 162-game season, Morales should significantly improve upon the ugly season that was 2014.

As Jason Ferrie of TodaysKnuckleBall.com writes:

"This year, Morales is hitting line drives on 22.4 percent of his batted balls. If the season ended today, this would be the highest line-drive percentage of his career. The groundball rate for Morales is 47.1 percent this season—which is right in line with the 47.6 percent rate for his career. It appears that Morales has traded fly balls for line-drives. This year, Morales is hitting fly balls on 30.6 percent of his batted balls. During his career, Morales has hit a fly ball on 34.3 percent of his batted balls. This is a trade-off that is good for both the Morales and the Royals."

Only time will tell if Morales can continue that type of production for the Royals. If he can, Morales belongs in the same conversation with the top producers in this group. If he regresses, though, he could very well wind up toward the bottom of this list.

There’s room on either side.

Next: No. 2

No. 2: Adam LaRoche, Chicago White Sox

Apr 29, 2015; Baltimore, MD, USA; Chicago White Sox designated hitter Adam LaRoche (25) stands at the top of the dugout during the fourth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Fans are not allowed to attend the game due to the current state of unrest in Baltimore. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Entering the season with high expectations, Adam LaRoche and the White Sox have been ice cold through one month of the season.

LaRoche, for one, has struck out 30 times already and hit just five extra-base hits in his first season with the White Sox. After signing a deal with the Sox as a prized free agent leaving the Washington Nationals, LaRoche was coming off a season where he hit .259 with 26 home runs and 92 RBIs. LaRoche has drove in 100 RBIs twice in his career and has contributed nine straight 20-plus home run seasons – excluding 2011 when he played just 43 games due to injury.

Unfortunately, the strikeout is also a big part of LaRoche’s game.

While he has acknowledged he is frustrated with his performance so far, LaRoche is a notoriously slow starter and his slow start is nothing to get bent out of shape over. He owns a career .713 OPS in the season’s opening month, but that number jumps well over .800 as the season progresses. And for the first time in his career, LaRoche will be relegated to a full-time DH role that he believes will keep him fresh throughout the season (c/o Chicago Sun Times):

"“I like it,’’ he said of the DH role. “It’s a little getting used to but I enjoy it. In the long haul will be good. But I don’t think that’s the issue because I’ve been pretty good in the past about getting over an at-bat. I can get over it pretty quick.”"

If his career numbers hold true this season, LaRoche is only getting started. By season’s end, he may very well challenge Victor Martinez for the top hitter on this list – especially given the talent around him in the White Sox lineup.

Next: No. 1

No. 1: Victor Martinez, Detroit Tigers

Apr 25, 2015; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Tigers designated hitter Victor Martinez (41) gets set to bat in the first inning against the Cleveland Indians at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Victor Martinez is hurt. There is absolutely no two ways about it. That is the only possible excuse for Martinez, who is a career .305 hitter, to be off to such a slow start for the Detroit Tigers.

When healthy, Martinez is one of the most dynamic hitters in all of baseball. He can hit for power and average. He sprays the ball all over the field and makes it next to impossible to effectively execute an appropriate shift. At his best, Martinez is the best designated hitter in the entire league – not just in the AL Central.

Finishing second in the AL MVP voting last season, Martinez hit .335/.409/.565 in 151 games with Detroit. He hit a career-high 32 home runs, added 33 doubles and contributed 103 RBIs behind Miguel Cabrera. Always a patient hitter, Martinez walked 70 times last season, not including the 28 free passes that were issued intentionally.

Hampered by a knee injury, Martinez is hitting just .213 to start the season and has seen every bit of his power sapped. He is still without a home run and he’s hit just one double, driving in just nine runs for the Tigers.

Something is wrong.

According to Jamie Samuelsen of the Detroit Free Press, the Tigers should place Martinez on the disabled list and allow him to get healthy for the long-term success of the Tigers in 2015. As Samuelsen wrote:

"Short term, Martinez needs to go on the 15-day disabled list. Anyone who says that the Tigers offense will struggle without Martinez for two weeks isn’t watching the Tigers. They are playing without Victor Martinez. If you look at Martinez’s WAR through his first 20 games, it’s -0.5. Translation? A minor league replacement level player would be worth one-half more win than Martinez has been worth to this point. Hardly the production you’re looking for from a cleanup hitter."

When healthy, Martinez is easily one of the best hitters in the game. At 36 years old, Martinez is still a significant difference-maker in an already potent Tigers lineup. He is ‘getting close’ to feeling like himself again and, when he’s finally healthy again, Martinez will undoubtedly sit atop this list throughout the duration of the season.

Next: Ranking the Right Fielders