OLD INTRO:
Yesterday I posted a depth chart of the top players acquired by American League teams as of New Years Eve 2016. Today, I'm following it up with the National League version. These hypothetical teams will obviously improve as the offseason goes on and more free agents come off the board / more trades are completed, so I will (likely) be updating these posts on a semi-regular basis. Enjoy!
NATIONAL LEAGUE ALL-ACQUIRED DEPTH CHART
CATCHERKurt Suzuki - 860 (8.1) - ATL
Derek Norris - 851 (6.8) - WAS
Nick Hundley - 821 (9.9) - SFG
Chris Iannetta - 518 (5.5) - ARI
In another one of my favorite projects (Developed Teams), Derek Norris also belongs to the Nationals, by virtue of the fact that the catcher spent the plurality of his formative minor league years in Washington's system before making his debut with Oakland. If all goes according to plan (i.e. Washington doesn't sign Matt Wieters and flip Norris before the season starts), the Nationals might reclaim a developed player who got away. The Angels curiously received only a backup catcher and a fringe prospect when they traded away their presumptive catcher of the future, and Jett Bandy will have some bigger holes to fill taking over where Jonathan Lucroy left off in Milwaukee. I was somewhat surprised that the Dodgers didn't re-sign A.J. Ellis as soon as the World Series ended, given that Clayton Kershaw is still on their team, but instead the backstop with the fabled clubhouse presence will reunite with his former manager Don Mattingly in Miami.
UPDATE: If you are looking for a dynamic catching acquisition for the National League, you'd better hope that Matt Wieters goes to the Nationals, or the Braves, or the Rockies. Because while this list has grown in size (even counting the replacements for Jett Bandy and A.J. Ellis), it hasn't added a confidence-building option behind the plate. Even though Norris is still slated to start for the Nationals, Kurt Suzuki and Nick Hundley each had better 2016 seasons from a points per game stantpoint, even though the former could very well be playing second fiddle to Tyler Flowers in Atlanta, and the latter will DEFINITELY be well behind Buster Posey in San Francisco.
FIRST BASEIan Desmond - 2,065 (13.2) - COL
Eric Thames - 2,569 (21.2) [KBO] - MIL
Darin Ruf - 141 (3.3) - LAD
It seems like a waste to have the player with the most defensive versatility playing the least defensively demanding position on the diamond. But then again, the point of versatility is for a player to be able to fill the role that's the greatest area of need for his club, and that's what Sean Rodriguez did at first base for the majority of his games in 2016 with the Pirates. Rodriguez likely won't play much first over the life of his deal with the Braves due to the presence of Freddie Freeman, and he might not even play much first on this hypothetical team if Eric Thames can come close to replicating his production in Korea over the last three years (124 homers, 64 stolen bases, and an OPS well over 1.100), he'll quickly force the issue and relegate Rodriguez back to a super utility role.
UPDATE: Those of you who looked at this list between New Year's Eve and the present will have seen Ian Desmond in his 2016 position of the outfield, leaving Sean Rodriguez to man first base. However, a recent outfielder acquisition means that a maximized NL All-Acquired lineup involves Desmond moving to the position he's projected to play in 2017 with the Rockies, who are now looking a lot less likely to sign a big bat and shift Desmond back to the grass.
SECOND BASELogan Forsythe - 1,440 (11.3) - LAD
Howie Kendrick - 1,196 (8.2) - PHI
Arismendy Alcantara - 37 (2.3) - CIN
Until 2016, when he was primarily a left fielder for the Dodgers, Howie Kendrick had spent relatively little time away from second base, apart from his rookie year in 2006 where he played more first base than second. Which is why it confused me during the '16 post season when Kendrick lost out playing time at the keystone to the likes of Charlie Culberson (who averaged 4.2 points per game in 2016 and has since been outrighted off LA's MLB roster) and Kike Hernandez (3.9 PPG). I mean, I know there exists something called the platoon advantage, but I don't blame the veteran Kendrick for being unhappy with his role on that team. He should have more of an opportunity for regular at bats with the rebuilding Phillies, at all of his positions.
UPDATE: The same second baseman who was replaced by the Dodgers in real life (Howie Kendrick), was just replaced on this list, by the same person who replaced him in real life (Logan Forsythe). Los Angeles acquired the former keystone infielder from the Rays, but for the same price that they offered to the Twins (Jose De Leon, see yesterday's post) for the guy who set the American League record for home runs by a second baseman (Brian Dozier). Seems like someone (possibly multiple folks across multiple organizations) has their prospect evaluation strings all crossed up.
THIRD BASETravis Shaw - 1,357 (9.4) - MIL
Richie Shaffer - 106 (5.3) - CIN
The Brewers picked up another presumptive position player of the future in Boston's former corner infielder Travis Shaw in exchange for their former closer Tyler Thornburg. While Shaw proved himself capable of handling the hot corner last year, his acquisition was also kind of a hedge in case Eric Thames doesn't deliver on his trans-pacific journey, in which case Shaw would move across the diamond to first and base stealing breakout Jonathan Villar could return to where he spent his 2016.
SHORTSTOPSean Rodriguez - 1,083 (7.7) - ATL
Ketel Marte - 876 (7.4) - ARI
Alexi Amarista - 264 (4.1) - COL
It must have been a while since Ketel Marte was last seriously considered as Seattle's shortstop of the future, given the rumblings that the Mariners tried to acquire Cincinnati's Zack Cozart, and then the November trade that netted Jean Segura from Arizona. But the young Marte doesn't have tremendous expectations to live up to in his new home of Arizona, given middle infielders Nick Ahmed and Chris Owings, so it's likely that Marte would start the 2017 season in the minors to get a little more seasoning. And if he doesn't pan out, Sean Rodriguez could cover shortstop if necessary.
UPDATE: The positional shakeup continues, as the versatile Sean Rodriguez will take over at the position that's number three on his personal depth chart. At least he's got a little backup with new Rockies utilityman Alexi Amarista now officially in the fold.
LEFT FIELDMichael Saunders - 1,459 (10.4) - PHI
Jeremy Hazelbaker - 672 (5.9) - ARI
And if neither Thames nor Marte works out, that would leave Ian Desmond to play first base, as he's projected to do in Colorado in 2017. However, I would consider that alignment a last resort if I were putting together this team, since Desmond's bat plays so much better in the outfield (assuming moving back to his original position of shortstop is out of the question due to defensive shortcomings). In fact, I'm all but certain that the Rockies have another move up their sleeve, whether that be dealing Charlie Blackmon or Carlos Gonzalez for pitching and signing Mark Trumbo/Chris Carter/Mike Napoli/etc., or... no, that's pretty much what I think is gonna happen.
UPDATE: Michael Saunders is the outfield acquisition who started the positional merry go round that caused Desmond and Rodriguez to shift spots. While the new Phillies left fielder has some questions of his own (most notably some long term injury concerns and a disastrous second half last year), his presence on this list does wonders to showcase the positional versatility of the rest of the roster.
CENTER FIELDDexter Fowler - 1,573 (12.6) - STL
Jon Jay - 803 (8.9) - CHC
Dexter Fowler was denied a spot on last year's version of this All-Acquired roster when the Cubs brought him back on a one-year deal after talks with the Orioles reportedly fell through. (And I don't care what Fowler's agent says, I have a gut feeling that there were definitely some wheelings and dealings up until the last minute.) Backing up Fowler is the man who will (partially) replace him in Chicago, doubles-machine Jon Jay.
RIGHT FIELDAdam Eaton - 1,821 (11.6) - WAS
Adam Eaton (not the pitcher) is the National League's version of Chris Sale: an affordable building block who was shipped out of Chicago (AL) for an impressive haul of prospects. He'll patrol center field in Washington this year in deference to Bryce Harper, even though he rates much better defensively as a right fielder, but if Harper bails after 2018 in search of a $500 million deal, Eaton could surely shift over to a corner spot.
Dan Straily - 1,721 (50.6) - MIA
Bartolo Colon - 1,699 (50.0) - ATL
Jaime Garcia - 1,060 (33.1) - ATL
R.A. Dickey - 998 (33.3) - ATL
Taijuan Walker - 987 (39.5) - ARI
RESERVES
Edinson Volquez - 797 (23.4) - MIA
Clay Buchholz - 794 (21.5) - PHI
Jhoulys Chacin - 767 (22.6) - SDP
Jeff Locke - 534 (17.8) - MIA
Brett Anderson - -110 (-27.5) - CHC
Apparently Atlanta thought the best way to celebrate the opening of their new ballpark was to scoop up all the oldest starting pitchers on the market on one year deals (and also trading for a relatively youthful option who will hit free agency next year). Whether that strategy was to provide a cheap-ish bridge to their young prospects in the pipeline or a sneaky attempt at competing in 2017, the Braves alone have picked up more viable starting candidates for 2017 than the entire American League combined. And since they're all three short term commitments, Atlanta could be setting themselves up with a great hand from which to deal at the deadline. Another reason why it wouldn't be a disaster if Ketel Marte were not to pan out in Arizona is because the main part of that Jean Segura trade was the upside-laden Taijuan Walker, who never put it all together in Seattle despite three seasons ranked within MLB's top 20 prospects.
The NL's crop of acquired starters is deep enough to have a pretty decent competition for the fifth spot in the rotation. Bounceback candidates Volquez and Buchholz should get plenty of time in the questionable rotation pictures for the Marlins and Phillies, respectively, while Jhoulys Chacin has a chance to establish some value spending the season in a pitcher's park for a team with a clear need for innings. All three of these pitchers - plus lefty Jeff Locke, for that matter - spent time in the bullpen in 2016, so whichever of them is not serving as rotation depth in the minors could function in a long relief capacity.
UPDATE: Even with the vast majority of the NL's pitching transactions settled before the calendar flipped, this team still managed to grab new pitchers for the top and bottom of its depth chart. Resurgent minor league strikeout specialist Dan Straily eclipsed Bartolo Colon in total fantasy points, points per game, and MLB.com fantasy ranking (235 to 282). However, both of Colon's new teammates also eclipsed Big Sexy in rank (Dickey with 258 and Garcia at 266). However, everyone else in the rotation loses out to Taijuan Walker, who clocks in at 193, which means that someone at MLB Advanced Media is probably a Mariners fan. Brett Anderson would likely be a very strong pitcher if healthy, but as someone who's followed Anderson's career (being an A's fan living in Los Angeles), I have no predictions of him being healthy.
Mark Melancon - 2,255 (30.1) - SFG
Wade Davis - 1,311 (29.1) - CHC
Fernando Rodney - 1,247 (18.6) - ARI
Brad Ziegler - 1,234 (17.9) - MIA
Koji Uehara - 714 (14.3) - CHC
Mike Dunn - 484 (9.5) - COL
Trevor Cahill - 623 (12.5) - SDP
RESERVES
Neftali Feliz - 623 (10.0) - MIL
Scott Feldman - 603 (15.1) - CIN
Joaquin Benoit - 526 (10.3) - PHI
Daniel Hudson - 504 (7.2) - PIT
Brett Cecil - 215 (4.0) - STL
Greg Holland - N/A - COL
The top three of these relievers served as closers for a portion of 2016 - Rodney and Ziegler until they were traded to teams with more established closing options, and Uehara when filling in while his team's closer was out with an injury - but it's the amount of time they each spent setting up that places them in this lower tier of the relief depth chart. Rodney will likely pitch the ninth inning for Arizona and Joaquin Benoit has a chance to supplant the surprising Jeanmar Gomez as the Phillies closer, but the rest of this group will have to be content with holds, barring any unforeseen roster changes. Lefty Mike Dunn does have a clause in his contract that rewards him for finishing games, but he strikes me as pretty far down on Colorado's closer pecking order. Brett Cecil didn't exactly have the 2016 numbers to merit placement on this list, but he's sure getting paid like he did, thanks to the three-year deal given by St. Louis.
UPDATE: Three of the four new 2016 relievers all scored within a couple dozen points of each other, but they were each acquired with a different role in mind. Trevor Cahill was acquired to start for the Padres, a role he's familiar with from his pre-Cubs days, and that projected workload makes him ideally suited as a long relief candidate on this particular hypothetical club. Neftali Feliz was acquired to close for the Brewers, and he has the murkiest track record of all the past/future closers on this roster. The Reds actually didn't have a fixed role in mind when they signed Scott Feldman, but they added provisions in his contract that will pay him if he winds up finding one role and sticking with it over the course of the season. And Greg Holland was acquired with the expected role of "pitcher not on the disabled list."And that's the updated version of the top players acquired by National League teams! Spring Training is only a couple weeks away! Woo!
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