The 15 worst hitters of the 21st century, ranked

OPS+: 45.5

Batting average: .236

Strikeout percentage: 9.1 percent

Batter WAR: -3.9

What followed: Perez stayed in the major leagues for another five seasons after 2002, playing for three different teams over that span before his career ended at 34 years old. Fortunately for the shortstop, his numbers were never as bad as they were that season — his last in Kansas City — although they were never great either. He hit .256 with a 63 OPS+ from 2003 to 2007.

OPS+: 46.3

Batting average: .217

Strikeout percentage: 15.2 percent

Batter WAR: -2.8

What followed: Infante retired after the 2016 without much improvement at the plate. He finished his career with an 87 OPS+.

OPS+: 47

Batting average: .220

Strikeout percentage: 13.5 percent

Batter WAR: -3.6

What followed: Barmes spent most of the next season in Triple-A, but has been a mainstay in the major leagues since. He’s split time between second base and shortstop and played in at least 100 games between 2008 and 2013, sporting a 78 OPS+ in that span. Barmes, 36, is hitting .250 in 91 games in his first season with the Padres.

OPS+: 48.4

Batting average: .230

Strikeout percentage: 10.3 percent

Batter WAR: -2.9

What followed: Izturis played for four different teams over the next three years before his career ended in 2013. 2010, however, was the shortstop’s last full season in the majors. He made just 348 plate appearances between 2011-13, hitting .225 with a 51 OPS+ in that span before his career ended at 33 years old.

OPS+: 49

Batting average: .168

Strikeout percentage: 36.8 percent

Batter WAR: -2.5

What followed: Davis began the 2019 season by finishing the longest hitless skid in MLB history. He's been a bit better since then, but he's still hitting under .200 as of mid-May. Signed to an expensive deal with the Orioles, he probably isn't going anywhere any time soon.

OPS+: 50.8

Batting average: .210

Strikeout percentage: 16.8 percent

Batter WAR: -2.8

What followed: Punto stuck around in the majors over the next seven seasons because he was a serviceable utility player, but his production at the plate hardly improved as he hit .246 with an 81 OPS+ between 2008 and 2014. Punto, 37, signed a one-year deal with the Diamondbacks in the 2015 offseason but chose to sit out that campaign. 

OPS+: 52.4

Batting average: .234

Strikeout percentage: 17.5 percent

Batter WAR: -2.8

What followed: Berroa spent the rest of his professional career in the minor leagues with a few big league callups mixed in. It was a disappointing turn for a shortstop who won Rookie of the Year with the Royals in 2003. Berroa’s tenure in Kansas City ended in 2008 when he was shipped to the Dodgers. He played in four more organizations over the next three seasons before going to Mexico, where he played as recently as this season, in 2013.

OPS+: 53.6

Batting average: .245

Strikeout percentage: 19.1

Batter WAR: -2.2

What followed: Cedeno’s rookie year was a forgettable one, and the beginning of what's been an unremarkable career. The shortstop has bounced between the Triple-A and the big leagues in the 10 seasons since, playing in just 683 major-league games and hitting .243 with a 75 OPS in that span. Cedeno spent half of 2015 in the Giants organization before playing in Mexico in late-July. 

OPS+: 52

Batting average: .227

Strikeout percentage: 16.9 percent

Batter WAR: -2.2

What followed: The centerfielder, now with the Royals, continues to be a prodigious stolen base threat but below-average hitter.

OPS+: 53.9

Batting average: .240

Strikeout percentage: 19.4 percent

Batter WAR: -3.3

What followed: Uribe has maintained his major league career since that ugly rookie season, hitting .256 with a 91 OPS+ in the last 13 years. The infielder has played for five different teams since 2004, three of which he’s played for this season. He slashed .249/.319/.409 for the Dodgers, Braves and Mets in 2015 and played his final year in 2016.

OPS+: 54

Batting average: .234

Strikeout percentage: 13.1 percent

Batter WAR: -3.2

What followed: Escobar played what was likely his final MLB season in 2018.

OPS+: 54.7

Batting average: .230

Strikeout percentage: 14.1 percent

Batter WAR: -2.3

What followed: Ausmus played one full major-league season in 2007 before splitting the next three years between the minor and major leagues. By this point the catcher was in his late-30s and in his twilight, so the dropoff in production wasn’t a surprise. He hit .238 in 374 at-bats between 2008 and 2010 before retiring at 41 years old. He’s now the manager of the Angels.

OPS+: 55

Batting average: .251

Strikeout percentage: 14.7 percent

Batter WAR: -2.5

What followed: 2008 was Taveras’ last with the Rockies. He played for the Reds in 2009 before making just 37 plate appearances for the rest of his major league career. The outfielder had three strong seasons in which he hit .293 with a 78 OPS+ before 2008 derailed his career. He's played in seven different organizations from 2008 to 2013, when his career ended in Triple-A with the Royals. 

OPS+: 55.1

Batting average: .240

Strikeout percentage: 13.7 percent

Batter WAR: -1.5

What followed: Lansing played one more season with the Red Sox in 2001 before his career ended at 33 years old. His value at that point in his major league tenure came as a utility infielder. However, he had hit .310 — the best average of his career — with Colorado in 1999. He was traded as an asset to Boston as part of a trade deadline deal in 2000, and hit .234 with a 58 OPS+ in his year and a half with the Sox.  

OPS+: 55.3

Batting average: .229

Strikeout percentage: 13 percent

Batter WAR: -2.3

What followed: Ausmus was the only player to make this list twice. As a catcher his numbers were never meant to be impressive, but they regressed more drastically as he entered his 30s. Ausmus was an All-Star in 1999 and retired in 2010 after an 18-year career.