Best MLB Designated Hitters 2026, Ranked by NUT
2026 seasonYordan Alvarez (HOU) is the best designated hitter in MLB in 2026 by NUT at +5.2, 1.6 ahead of Ben Rice (+3.6), with Kyle Schwarber third at +2.8. 16 of 33 qualified designated hitters are producing above league average.
| # | Player | NUT | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yordan AlvarezHOU | +5.2 | |
| 2 | Ben RiceNYY | +3.6 | |
| 3 | Kyle SchwarberPHI | +2.8 | |
| 4 | Shohei OhtaniLAD | +2.6 | |
| 5 | Yandy DíazTB | +1.8 | |
| 6 | Dominic CanzoneSEA | +1.6 | |
| 7 | Bryce EldridgeSF | +1.6 | |
| 8 | Joc PedersonTEX | +1.2 | |
| 9 | Randal GrichukCWS | +1.2 | |
| 10 | Mickey GasperBOS | +0.8 | |
| 11 | Iván HerreraSTL | +0.6 | |
| 12 | Michael ConfortoCHC | +0.6 | |
| 13 | Josh BellMIN | +0.4 | |
| 14 | Eugenio SuárezCIN | +0.3 | |
| 15 | Masataka YoshidaBOS | +0.3 | |
| 16 | George SpringerTOR | +0.2 | |
| 17 | Jesús SánchezAZ | -0.1 | |
| 18 | Miguel AndujarSD | -0.1 | |
| 19 | Taylor WardSEA | -0.3 | |
| 20 | Andrew BenintendiCWS | -0.3 | |
| 21 | Dominic SmithATL | -0.3 | |
| 22 | Jahmai JonesBOS | -0.3 | |
| 23 | José TenaWSH | -0.4 | |
| 24 | Agustín RamírezMIA | -0.4 | |
| 25 | Brent RookerATH | -0.4 |
8 more qualified designated hitters are on the full NUT leaderboard.
How the designated hitters list is ranked
Players are listed at their primary position and ranked by season NUT — weighted runs above average from wOBA, divided by runs per win. Defense is left out. Only players past the qualifying bar for the season so far are included, the same bar as the Stats leaderboard. Grades use the season scale: S is elite, C is around league average.