Biggest winners from MLB's adoption of universal DH

It's finally here. While owners and players can't seem to agree on much these days - the collective bargaining agreement that guarantees any baseball at all in 2022 still needs to be ratified - the two parties seem to have agreed on implementing the universal designated hitter on a permanent basis.

The league introduced it briefly during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign but rescinded it for the following season seemingly as a bargaining token for the forthcoming CBA negotiations. Well, commissioner Rob Manfred has now indicated, according to Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post, that the two sides will no longer quibble over an item that makes the sport more watchable.

So, while the biggest winners here are almost certainly the fans, here are some other beneficiaries around the league.

New York Mets

The Mets currently have a bit of a logjam of sluggers. Two of Robinson Cano, Jeff McNeil, Dominic Smith, and J.D. Davis would start games on the bench. The club has reportedly been shopping McNeil and could find a deal once the CBA is ratified. However, with all 30 teams scrambling to do an entire offseason's worth of work in a few days - signing remaining free agents, filing for arbitration hearings, preparing spring facilities - McNeil might not be top of mind for either the Mets or potential suitors. So, perhaps a midseason deal makes more sense, and that's a lot easier to pull off if you let McNeil play second and third base and just allow Cano, Davis, and Smith to share DH duties.

Even further, the front office just invested $130 million in a 37-year-old pitcher. Max Scherzer has played a huge portion of his career in the National League, so he's no stranger to standing in the batter's box. However, it would be best if the Mets could protect that investment and make sure this never happens again:

The Mets will dish out nearly $80 million combined to Scherzer and Jacob deGrom next year alone. The club isn't paying them to get hits but to prevent the other team from getting hits, and now the hurlers can focus on what they do best.

Atlanta Braves

The new rule likely gives Ronald Acuna Jr. an easier path back to the Braves' lineup from the torn ACL he sustained midway through last season. He's expected back at some point during the campaign, and giving him a regular day off from the field without losing his bat would be a huge boon for the defending champions.

And once Acuna comes back, Atlanta will need to find a way to fit Marcell Ozuna, Adam Duvall, and one of Drew Waters or Cristian Pache into the lineup.

Right-hander Mike Soroka is also expected to return at some point after rupturing his Achilles twice. Any unnecessary running - even feebly jogging down to first base after hitting an 11-hopper to shortstop - would be ill-advised.

Kyle Schwarber

Schwarber's stock will be on the rise when free agency resumes. The 28-year-old's ability to mash has been negated by outfield play that resulted in a minus-10 defensive rating between the Washington Nationals and Boston Red Sox in 2021, according to FanGraphs. Now, he'll easily be the No. 1 DH target on the open market thanks to his elite bat and will garner plenty of interest from NL clubs.

The All-Star slugger had a .928 OPS and went deep 32 times over 113 games last season. He's now hit 30-plus homers in three of his last five years. Schwarber was reportedly asking for a three-year, $60-million deal prior to the lockout, but that price could increase based on the number of new suitors likely to vie for his services.

The seven-year veteran's health could also benefit from being a full-time DH. Last season, he appeared in the fewest number of contests since becoming a regular in 2017, excluding the shortened 2020 campaign. Schwarber now has a better opportunity to stay on the field, which could result in a 40-homer year.

New York Yankees

Yes, the Yankees have had the DH this whole time, but being able to potentially trade a slugger to 15 new teams ensures the Bronx Bombers will be open for business.

New York employs several hitters who are best suited as full-time DHs. The Yankees would probably love to offload Giancarlo Stanton, who's still owed $189 million over six years, to a club looking for a bat. He's a liability with his glove and injuries are a concern moving forward despite a bounce-back season in 2021.

Luke Voit is another redundant player for the Yankees. He hasn't been able to stay on the field but owns a career .867 OPS over 351 contests. He led the majors with 22 homers across the pandemic-shortened season. Voit is projected to make $5.25 million in 2022 and is arbitration-eligible through 2024.

Joey Gallo could be another option, and there's even a path to shopping Aaron Judge if extension talks don't go well before he's able to test free agency after the upcoming season. If New York is actually serious about its interest in Matt Olson and Freddie Freeman, it'll need to make space somehow.

Veteran sluggers

Of course, the most notable beneficiaries of the universal DH are the folks who've benefitted from the role since its inception in 1973: aging sluggers.

Nelson Cruz was likely in line for an MLB job next year regardless, though a pretty poor showing down the stretch with the Tampa Bay Rays perhaps raised some doubts. Now, he'll potentially have 15 more suitors lining up.

It will be interesting to see whether this prolongs Albert Pujols' career. The 42-year-old's days in the field are likely done, but he's a future Hall of Famer chasing the 700-homer plateau - a team might want to take a chance on that milestone happening in its uniform.

The aforementioned Cano also fits the bill of a veteran potentially seeing his career lengthened, as well as the Cincinnati Reds' Joey Votto and free agent Andrew McCutchen, among others.