Who should DH for the New York Yankees in 2012?

Added by Gregg Snyder on January 17, 2012.

After trading super prospect Jesus Montero to the Seattle Mariners for last year’s Rookie of the Year Michael Pineda, the New York Yankees have a void at DH. Montero was expected to be the teams regular designated hitter where he could show off his tremendous talent swinging the bat. With him gone, the Yankees will look for other options to fill that role.

New York has been linked to a few available free agents that could handle the DH spot. The biggest bat would be Carlos Pena. The DH/1B struggled a litte bit last season but does still have a monster bat capable of beating up on opposing teams right handed pitchers. The power is still there. Pena hit 28 homers last season for the Chicago Cubs. Overall though, he hit just .225.

With the Yankees only having $1-2 million to spend on a DH, Pena may not be an option.

New York has also been in contact with a pair of former Yankees outfielders, Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui. Both veterans are currently free agents that would come cheaper than Pena.

Damon, while mostly a DH now a days, could spell an outfielder every now and then as well. The lefty hit .261 last season for the Tampa Bay Rays, including 16 home runs and stole 19 bases. With Damon being a Scott Boras client, he may not come at a discount.

Matsui spent last season with the Oakland A’s and never really got it going. Matsui hit just .251 with 12 home runs last season. He likely would not be much help in the outfield any more either due to some issues with his legs. The Yankees could probably sign Matsui for less than $2 million however.

Of course the Yankees could just use their current roster and form some what if a rotating DH. Aging and injury prone third baseman Alex Rodriguez will surely need some time off, at least out of the playing field. Keeping his bat and body healthy and fresh will be a major key for the Yankees. Derek Jeter is another older star that could use some time at DH.

Backup outfielder Andruw Jones would be a solid option for the DH spot, especially against left handed pitchers. Jones is much better against lefties than righties. The Yankees could also re-sign backup corner infielder Eric Chavez.

Another option would be to give Jorge Vazquez a shot. The Yankees may be willing to see what Vazquez can do after his belted 32 home runs and hit .262 in Triple-A last season. Vazquez would also likely be the backup first baseman is he makes the roster.

If I had to guess, I would say the Yankees use their basic roster to handle the DH position. As we said, Rodriguez and Jeter could use some time their this season. The Yankees have continued to say they want to get more at-bats for infielder Eduardo Nunez. DH’ing Jeter and A-Rod would open up a spot in the lineup for Nunez.

Look for Jones, Vazquez, Jeter, and Rodriguez to split time at DH in 2012. I don’t see the Yankees expanding their payroll budget to sign another aging veteran like Pena, Damon or Matsui.

Who would you like to see as the Yankees DH this coming season?