DHs on the Move

The biggest baseball news of the weekend was Carlos Beltran signing with the Astros. After spending last season with the Yankees and Rangers, the veteran switch hitter decided to stay in the AL West -- jumping to the Rangers' cross-state rival, where he starred in 2004, before leaving for the Mets in his first chance at free agency.
The onetime AL Rookie of the Year had another productive year in 2016, (29 homers, 93 RBI, a .295 average),and has long been praised as a positive clubhouse influence.
As he approaches his 40th birthday in April, Beltran might be a little bit of a gamble for Houston. Maybe more than just a little. He's remained productive when healthy, but age is age. And in a post-PED, post-amphetamines game, the aging process can be abrupt and cruel. And you never know what the point of no return might be. Carlos' Yankee teammate Alex Rodriguez was having a surprisingly productive season in 2015, but it seemed as if the day he turned 40, his numbers fell off dramatically -- a decline that continued into '16, until he was released in August.
While no two people age quite the same way, it will be interesting to see how Beltran's numbers hold up as the season approaches game #140 and then 162 -- and should the Astros get that far, the post-season.
Although he joins a talented core of young Astros such as Jose Altuve, George Springer and Carlos Correia, color me skeptical on Beltran being the man to get Houston back to the World Series.
Sunday night, we learned that the Yankees DH next season will be Matt Holliday. While there was some speculation about Beltran possibly returning to the Bronx, the Yanks instead go with the slightly younger (37 instead of 40) longtime Cardinal outfielder.
Coming off a down season, he lands a one-year $13 million, hopeful that primarily working as a DH in a home run-friendly park boosts his future value. But he's also a gamble, especially since he's had injury issues lately. In the last two seasons, Matt has played just 183 out of a possible 324 games -- just 54% of the schedule. Maybe the odds favor a Holliday rebound. But at 37? A lot of the questions attached to Beltran in 2017 will also apply to Matt Holliday.

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