But when I see that the baseball hot stove headlines are filled with blockbuster trades and sport-defining free agent contracts, it puts me in the mood to revise an old project of mine, the All-Acquired teams, one for each league. But rather than present a set of fully developed lineups, I decided to take a more interactive approach and keep somewhat of a running depth chart, where player-specific blurbs can be regularly updated and readers can imagine their own rosters/lineups.
Let's start with AL position players, as they made the most shocking recent acquisition as of this writing. I hope this project helps make sense of an eventful offseason!
AL CATCHER
Hank Conger
Chris Iannetta
Jarrod Saltalamacchia
Hank Conger finds himself eligible for this list for the second year in a row, following being unceremoniously purchased (i.e. traded for cash) from the Astros by (i.e. to) the Rays. The 2014-15 offseason trade that sent the pitch framing specialist from the Angels (his developed team, btw, that might come up later) to the Astros was rather ceremonious, netting a major league ready starting pitcher (Nick Tropeano) as well as his replacement behind the plate (Carlos Perez).
In real life, Conger is right now slated to form the strong half of a platoon with Curt Casali. Likewise on this All-Acquired team it makes sense to pair him with one of the many platoon-type catchers who changed teams this offseason, anyone from his former teammate Chris Iannetta, to switch-hitting Jarrod Saltalamacchia, to even Geovany Soto, or Dioner Navarro, all of whom hit lefties better than righties. Indeed, ever since the A's found such success platooning players in general (but especially catchers), many teams have built their backstop depth OUT as opposed to UP, to borrow a term from Magic: The Gathering.
AL FIRST BASE
Seattle was involved in the trades of starter Adam Lind and his runner-up Logan Morrison, bringing in the former, and shipping out the latter. The lefty put up good numbers in Milwaukee but only has one year left on his contract (which he signed in Toronto) before free agency, highlighting the "win-now" mentality of Seattle's new GM, Jerry Dipoto. Actually, he's exhibiting more of an "if it moves, trade it" mentality, but some of those moves have to pan out, right? Honorable mentions go not only to Morrison, but fellow lefty Yonder Alonso, picked up by the A's, and Koren import Byung-ho Park, who will suit up for the Twins.
AL SECOND BASE
Brett Lawrie
Starlin Castro
Lawrie spent most of his 2015 season playing third base for Oakland, but he also qualified at second base, which is likely where he'll play in 2016 for the White Sox given their latest marquee addition. The versatile Canadian is the top point-scorer among players that qualified at the keystone, edging out new Yankees projected second sacker Starlin Castro and finishing well ahead of utility infielder Cliff Pennington. Someone else who bears mentioning in this group is Jed Lowrie, who might play either second base OR shortstop for the A's, depending on how Marcus Semien's defense progresses.
AL THIRD BASE
Todd Frazier
Yunel Escobar
Brett Lawrie
The three-team trade between the White Sox, Reds, and Dodgers that sent Todd Frazier to the south side of Chicago is what prompted me to post this list in the first place, as it's always a big deal when the reigning Home Run Derby champion changes teams. Frazier is a middle of the order presence that can solidify any lineup, and his acquisition is a clear signal that the Sox are going to make a push to catch the World Champion Royals in their division.
The Frazier trade edges out Yunel Escobar, who had a very successful season playing exclusively third base for the Nationals. I've heard some talk about about the Angels possibly giving him some time at second base this year, despite his having spent the last 7 years at shortstop, which is another position he could play on this team.
AL SHORTSTOP
Andrelton Simmons
Yunel Escobar*
Starlin Castro
Brad Miller
Going by raw point totals (and ignoring last year's positional eligibility), Escobar would get the nod here. But something tells me that if he moved back to the more defensively challenging position, his production at the plate might revert back to that of his more pedestrian last few years. So it seemed more prudent to give the spot to the elite defender and keep Escobar as a utility player, or perhaps even DH consideration, since Brad Miller's multi-positional talents makes him better suited for that role.
AL LEFT FIELD
Nori Aoki
Joey Butler
Aoki is another beneficiary of Seattle's whirlwind offseason, where he'll hope to follow in the tradition started by Ichiro of left handed Japanese slap hitters performing extremely well playing in the Pacific Northwest... at least against right handers. He'll move up north after spending just one year with the Giants; and it being an odd numbered year, he has no World Series ring to show for it.
AL CENTER FIELD
Cameron Maybin
Aaron Hicks
Maybin revitalized his career last year playing with the Braves, and now he'll hope to continue the upward trend with the team that initially drafted him and shepherded him through the minor leagues. Maybin also finds himself eligible for this list for the second year in a row, just like the player he was traded for last offseason (Craig Kimbrel).
AL RIGHT FIELD
Mark Trumbo
Chris Young
The big bat of Trumbo is better suited for first base or DH than the outfield, but with a noticeably weak (for now) acquired outfield market, here he must play. In fact, Trumbo has a shockingly similar defensive profile as slugger Chris Davis, whose former team just acquired the slugger from (who else?) the Mariners. Maybe these circumstances foretell a similar breakout, or maybe it's just a coincidence.
AL DESIGNATED HITTER
Yunel Escobar
Mark Trumbo
Logan Morrison
See above for thoughts on these folks. Also stay tuned for updates, as the transaction column continues to be chock full every day!
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