McCutchen re-signed with the Pirates on a modest one-year deal and projects to slot into the DH role in 2025. His 105 wRC+ from 2024 indicates that he's still performing at a high level even entering his age-38 season, yet signs of decline are still apparent. A primary concern is bat speed. The most straightforward illustration of that is his strikeout rate jumped to a career-worst 25.8 percent, with his in-zone contact correspondingly tumbling to 80.2 percent. Put another way, his success against fastballs decreased significantly as he posted just a .359 xwOBA against the pitch, with 2022 being the only lower mark of his career. The other major drawback is that McCutchen will only be eligible at utility for fantasy purposes after starting only five games in right field in 2024. Despite those negatives, McCutchen still has a few things going for him. His role in Pittsburgh should be safe after another quiet offseason for the team, and he still gets on base in roughly one-third of his plate appearances. Projecting 15 home runs with a .330 on-base percentage and 110 runs + RBI seems to be a fair baseline expectation, giving McCutchen limited appeal in deeper mixed as well as NL-only formats. Read Past Outlooks