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2023 Player Outlook

DeJong now has not one, but two straight seasons hitting below the Mendoza line, and one could say he bottomed out in 2022. On top of a measly .157 batting average in 77 games, he posted a career-high 33.3 percent strikeout rate, a career-worst 66.6 percent contact rate, and you guessed it, a career-worst 16.3 percent swinging strike rate. If DeJong doesn’t hit in the spring, he’s in some trouble, because there isn’t really a spot for him in the starting lineup, and one could argue that there are multiple bats currently on the bench better than him. If he hits and provides a spark, maybe there’s a chance, but there’s a very real possibility that his biggest addition to the Cardinals this year is as a late-inning defensive replacement.