The Baseball Off-Season is all about free agents. The market becomes flooded with them immediately after the World Series, and they generally represent the quickest way to add new talent without giving up any existing talent (not counting sacrificing draft picks for Type A or B free agents). But just as important as giving a new home to a player with wanderlust is holding onto your own free agency-eligible players. And although trades can happen at any time during the season, off-season trades have a somewhat different character - they are made with the idea of preparing for the coming season rather than bolstering an already-existing lineup.
So here is the first list:
TOP 10 NEW FREE AGENT SIGNINGS (+1 Extra Bonus Pick!)
Without using baseball-reference.com, could you guess who played the majority of games in left field for the Boston Red Sox in 2010? Now be honest, who here would have said Daniel Nava, the 27-year-old rookie who hadn't seen any major league action before last year? Doesn't sound like a starting corner outfielder on a championship caliber team, does it? Well it wasn't, but boy do they have one lined up for next year - and for six years thereafter. Crawford is one of the fastest players in the game, he's flashed some decent power, and he doesn't embarrass himself in the field.
But for the grace of God, Beltre could have been flashing his awesome glove at the hot corner for the Oakland A's, representing a massive step toward helping their fans forget the injury woes of Eric Chavez - just as Beltre's phenomenal 2010 in Boston helped his supporters forget his woes in Seattle. But instead he signed with the Rangers, a team who already had a perfectly viable third baseman (in Michael Young) AND who failed to re-sign their best starting pitcher.
Lee is the above-mentioned pitcher that the Rangers failed to sign - he was picked up by the Philadelphia Phillies in a surprising move, since many saw his negotiations as a two-horse race between the Rangers and the Yankees. That race has left both runners up clawing at each others' throats, while the winner came away with four staff ace-caliber pitchers (Roy Halladay, Lee, Roy Oswalt, and Cole Hamels). If there was any doubt about the National League team to beat in 2011, I'd like to consider that doubt dispelled.
He hits for more raw power than Crawford and draws more walks, but Werth is all but guaranteed to be nowhere near the 2011 playoffs, seeing as he's locked up with the perpetually basement dwelling Washington Nationals. I know Stephen Strasburg is on the way back from surgery and Bryce Harper is s'posed to be one heck of a hitter, but will Werth and his gargantuan contract still be around when those youngsters are ready to participate at the big league level?
You got to hand it to the Tigers, making a couple of moves to try and stay competitive in what could be a weak AL Central. Experts say that V-Mart will likely spend most of his time as Detroit's DH, although he does have the ability to play both catcher and first base. His value goes down a bit considering his production won't be coming from the game's weakest offensive position, but he might perform better without the physical strain that comes from playing behind the plate.
Soriano put up really impressive numbers as the Rays' closer, yet he will spend 2011 setting up for perhaps the greatest living closer ever in Mariano Rivera. Perhaps the Yankees committed too much cash for such a fungible position, and it seems almost wasteful NOT to have one of last year's most effective closers actually closing out games, but, as I've noted before, relief pitchers play a valuable role in their teams' success, and a deep bullpen never hurt anyone.
Dunn is a one-sided talent, but since he was signed by the White Sox, who already have an All-Star first baseman in Paul Konerko, Dunn won't even have to play the field at all. (He used to be an outfielder, but last year his manager finally gave up on sending him out there, opting instead to plant him at first base.) This is one of those picture-perfect scenarios: big hit, no field player signs with an American League team to finish up his career as a DH. They happen so rarely that it's a situation worth keeping an eye on to see if it actually pans out as planned.
This spot was somewhat of a toss-up between Uribe and Miguel Tejada. Both put up very similar numbers playing shortstop for contending NL West teams, but it was Tejada's poor play at third base for the Orioles during the first half of his season that gave me pause. Uribe is slated to play second base for the Dodgers in 2011 while Tejada should move back to short for the Giants, so Tejada has a higher expected value next season, but I think Uribe has the better chance to succeed.
Matsui will represent not only the best, but the ONLY power bat on a pitching-and-defense oriented Oakland A's roster. He hit decently in 2010, and as long as the A's keep him OUT of the outfield, he should be able to contribute more than he did last year with the Angels (he represented a full 0.4 wins BELOW replacement last year in the field). But perhaps more important than how he performs with the bat is whether "Godzilla" will attract more fans of the Japanese persuasion to attend games at the dilapidated Oakland Coliseum.
It seems like no former closers are being signed to actually be closers this year: lefty reliever Brian Fuentes will be setting up for former Rookie of the Year Andrew Bailey. He excelled in this role with the Twins last year after spending the previous 5.5 years closing for first the Rockies, then the Angels. The A's bullpen should definitely be able to protect leads... if the offense ends up scoring any runs.
I added an extra spot for the O-Dog, and since he's signed for three years, this should be his last appearance on this list for a while (after two straight one-year deals). We'll see if he, along with new double play partner Jason Bartlett, can reinvigorate a San Diego lineup suffering from the loss of franchise player Adrian Gonzalez.
Next Time: A significantly shorter list, comprised of the best Free Agent Re-Signings... STAY TUNED!
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