Comparing the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers by position group for 2023

St. Louis Cardinals v Milwaukee Brewers
St. Louis Cardinals v Milwaukee Brewers / Stacy Revere/GettyImages
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Designated Hitter

Outside of William Contreras, the other big addition to the Brewers lineup this off-season was Jesse Winker, whom they dealt Kolten Wong for. Winker was one of the best hitters in baseball against right-handed pitching from 2019-2021 but really struggled during 2022 after being traded from the Reds to the Mariners. Winker still maintained a great OBP despite the down year, and even if he doesn't hit as he did in Cincinnati, I would bet he bounces back in 2023.

Juan Yepez is primed to breakout at the plate this year in the DH role, and the Cardinals will also use guys like Alec Burleson and Nolan Gorman at the position as well as rotating some of their regulars there. There is a ton of potential for high-level production for St. Louis, which is another huge positive for this Cardinal lineup.

Still, I would give the advantage to Jesse Winker here, as I am someone who believes he will return to form in 2023. The path toward St. Louis having a better DH spot would be if they find the right platoon mix against right and left-handed pitching. Winker is a monster against right-handed pitching but struggles against left-handers. If the Cardinals can put up numbers against both, they could easily outproduce Winker.

For now though, advantage to the Brewers.