Pirates A to Z: Carlos Santana targeted to fulfill needs at 1B/DH, provide veteran leadership

During the offseason, the Tribune-Review will offer Pirates A to Z: An alphabetical, player-by-player look at the 40-man roster, from outfielder Miguel Andujar to pitcher Bryse Wilson.

Player: Carlos Santana

Position: First baseman/designated hitter

Bats: Switch

Throws: Right

Age: 36 (April 8)

Height: 5-foot-11

Weight: 215 pounds

2022 MLB statistics: Slashed .202/.316/.376 with 18 doubles, 19 home runs and 60 RBIs in 131 games for the Kansas City Royals and Seattle Mariners.

Contract: One year, $6.725 million.

Acquired: Signed as a free agent on Nov. 28.

This past season: An All-Star in 2019, when he batted .288, hit 34 home runs and had 93 RBIs for Cleveland, Santana has struggled to hit his weight the past three seasons.

Santana was only batting .216 with four home runs and 21 RBIs in the second year of a two-year, $17.5 million contract with the Royals when he was traded to the Mariners on June 27.

Despite his low batting average, Santana continued to find ways to get on base. He had a .349 on-base percentage and drew more walks (36) than he had strikeouts (28) in 52 games and slashed .357/.478/.554 in June.

With Ty France (elbow) on the injured list, the Mariners had a need for both a switch-hitter and first baseman. The Royals sweetened the deal by adding nearly $4.3 million to help cover all but $1.5 million of Santana’s salary so that they could promote prospect Vinnie Pasquantino.

Santana played 40 games as designated hitter and 34 at first base. His batting average slipped to .192 with Seattle, but he had eight doubles, 15 homers and 39 RBIs in 79 games.

Santana showed he still has some pop left in his bat over the final 29 games, hitting seven home runs with 17 RBIs. He homered twice in three games over a 10-day span, against Atlanta on Sept. 9 and at the Los Angeles Angels on Sept. 16 and Sept. 19, when he hit a grand slam off Jose Suarez with two outs in the fifth inning of a 9-1 win.

CARLOS SANTANA WITH THE MARINERS GRAND SLAM! ???? ???? pic.twitter.com/8tAQSbZNll

— Seattle Mariners ON Tap (@MarinersONtap) September 19, 2022

In the playoffs, Santana played a key role in Seattle’s Game 2 win at Toronto in the AL wild card series, going 2 for 4 with three RBIs. He doubled off starter Kevin Gausman in the first inning and came to bat with the bases loaded in the sixth.

Tim Mayza replaced Gausman, only to throw a wild pitch that allowed France to score and advance both runners. Santana then hit a three-run homer to left-center to cut it to 8-5. That sparked a Mariners comeback for a 10-9 victory.

SLAMTANA. MARINERS GET A CARLOS SANTANA HOMER!! BACK IN THIS!!! pic.twitter.com/pjEUS45BGh

— Seattle Mariners ON Tap (@MarinersONtap) October 8, 2022

After trading for Ji-Man Choi, the Pirates targeted Santana in free agency to help fill their holes at first base and designated hitter. The Pirates needed to upgrade their defense at first base and found a good glove in Santana, who was Wilson’s 2017 defensive player of the year.

“The Pirates took charge and showed so much interest in me,” Santana said, “that it really made it key for me to want to take a look back and join this organization and represent them.”

Per Statcast, Santana ranked in the 97th percentile in walk rate (14%) and 74th in strikeout rate (17.4%) while ranking in the 81st percentile in average exit velocity (90.7 mph).

“He’s been obviously a really consistent performer for a long time. He hits from both sides of the plate,” Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said. “He’s continued to walk a lot, not strike out, hit the ball hard.”

Carlos Santana, as optimum of a contact point as they make 'em ???? pic.twitter.com/GUPM1nmXms

— Daniel Kramer (@DKramer_) September 10, 2022

The future: A 13-year veteran who has played for Cleveland, Philadelphia, Kansas City and Seattle, Santana is the first to admit that he has “a lot of years under my belt.”

The Pirates view that as a positive, even though he’ll turn 37 a day after their home opener. Their clubhouse lacks both veteran experience and leadership, and bringing in a player with both who also has Dominican heritage should benefit fellow infielders Oneil Cruz and Rodolfo Castro.

“The fact that we were able to add Carlos into a situation where we have a ton of young Latin players, especially young Dominican players …,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said at the Winter Meetings. “If you’ve done any homework on Carlos Santana, we’re talking about an elite human being who we’re bringing into our clubhouse who wanted to be in Pittsburgh, was excited to be there.”

Carlos Slamtana pic.twitter.com/S033mPKxDD

— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) November 30, 2022

Santana is receptive to that role, promising to bring positive energy to the Pirates, as well as another power bat that can lengthen the lineup and provide stability at first base or designated hitter.

“Looking forward to bringing that experience here,” Santana said. “These young guys here, there’s a lot of talent. There’s a lot of potential. I’ve been in this situation before. I’ve been in a clubhouse with a lot of young talent. I can bring my experience and be there for them.”

The Pirates are counting on Santana to benefit from baseball banning the defensive shift next season, allowing him to improve his batting average while maintaining an impressive on-base percentage.

“We believe based on the analysis we’ve done from his 2022 season and then potentially some benefit from the shift rules that there could be even more offense than what he showed this past year,” Cherington said. “A little combination of a little bit of bad luck this past year and perhaps the benefit from the shift going away.”

The question that lingers is whether Santana will play first base or serve as DH, or if he will platoon with Choi in both spots. Santana has played 152 games or more in nine seasons, 143 in 2012 and all 60 in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. His 131 games last season was the lowest percentage of games he’s played since his rookie year.

“We have to just make sure we monitor his body,” Shelton said. “We are talking about a guy who’s 36 years old and has logged as many games as anybody in baseball, or in the top-three or four over the last few years.”