Kerry Carpenter

Carpenter was affected by injury in 2024 for the second year in a row, this time missing almost three months of action with a lumbar spine stress fracture. He had collected a .914 OPS before getting hurt and didn't miss a beat after returning, putting up a .954 OPS and 10 home runs over his final 133 plate appearances before adding another homer in the playoffs. Carpenter again stood out for his quality of contact, boasting a 46.4 percent hard-hit rate and 17.7 percent barrel rate. The 27-year-old's big bugaboo is that he can't hit left-handed pitching (.408 OPS in 2024) and rarely gets the opportunity to do so. It certainly limits how much volume he's able to provide, and that's even before factoring in Carpenter's increasing injury concerns. That said, Carpenter's 149 wRC+ versus righties since the start of 2023 is the 11th highest in baseball among players with at least 500 plate appearances. When he's in the lineup, he's going to mash. Read Past Outlooks