Free Agent Profile: Jesse Winker, DH

Jesse Winker

Position: DH/OF B/T: L/L
Age: 31 (08/17/1993)

2024 Traditional Stats: 508 PA, .253/.360/.405/.764, 14 HR, 53 RBI, 14 SB
2024 Advanced Stats: 118 wRC+, .304 BABIP, .338 wOBA, 20.9 K%, 12.4 BB%, 2.0 bWAR, 2.3 fWAR

Rundown

So little time, so many highlights. Jesse Winker came over from the Washington Nationals at the trade deadline and a few weeks later hit a walk-off home run and dropped an awesome quote, instantly becoming a fan-favorite. In the playoffs, he followed that up with spiking his helmet at home after scoring in Game 3 of the wild card series.

“He plays the game of baseball like a middle linebacker,” Pete Alonso told the New York Post in October. “He’s just full intensity, full bore all the time. He’s always super high energy, and you love that.”

Despite all that, Winker did slash a disappointing .243/.318/.365 in 129 plate appearances with the Mets, though, he did perform well in the postseason (7-for-22 with a home run, two triples, and seven walks). One has to wonder, if a back issue, resulted in some of the struggles to end the regular season.

Many Mets fans remember a time when they were on the other side o Winker’s antics. He got into it with Mets fans during a game in 2019 while playing left field for the Reds, then taunted the crowd when he made a game-ending sliding catch for the last laugh. Three years later, while playing for the Seattle Mariners, he admired a home run at Citi Field and got a rise out of the crowd again, waving as he crossed home plate.

Winker debuted with the Reds in 2017 and played five years in Cincinnati, putting together his best season in 2021 when he hit 24 homers, drove in 71 runs, and slashed .305/.394/.556. The Reds traded him to Seattle, and after a rough 2022, the Mariners traded him to Milwaukee.

He had a dismal 2023, hitting one home run with a .199 batting average for the Brewers in 197 plate appearances. He was signed by the Nationals as a free agent last winter and bounced back in the first half (11 home runs, .793 OPS) before being dealt to the Mets for minor league pitcher Tyler Stuart. For those curious, Stuart posted a 2.08 ERA in Double-A after the trade, but struggled in Triple-A, posting a 7.56 ERA across 16 2/3 innings.

At his best, the left-handed hitting Winker is extremely patience in the box, taking a number of walks and not chasing (96th percentile chase and walk rates in 2024). In doing so, swinging at good pitches and providing some power.

Contract

Winker played 2024 on a one-year, $2 million deal in 2024. He was signed to a “prove-it” deal by the Nationals in the offseason and rewarded them well, netting them a pitching prospect at the deadline.

For his next deal, the Athletic a projecting a two-year contract worth $17 million overall. This would bring a $8.5 million average annual value for the platoon designated hitter.

Recommendation

If the Mets chose to bring back Winker, he would once again serve as the left-handed side of a platoon at designated hitter. Given his subpar range in the outfield (first percentile outs above average in 2024), a role exclusively as a designated hitter is best.

Winker, with health, should be able to thrive solely focusing on hitting against right-handed pitching. He owns an .841 career OPS against righties. Of course, with his struggles against left-handed pitching (.661 OPS), he would solely play against right-handed pitching.

At the cheap rate proposed by the Athletic above, he would partner well with Starling Marte, who had an .844 OPS versus left-handed pitching last season, in a platoon designated hitter situation.

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