MLB Hot Stove: 'All-Unsigned Free Agents' team with best available free agents
Jose Bautista and Mark Trumbo are the headliners, obviously, but who else?
By
Mike Axisa
•
3 min read
In a little more than five weeks, spring training camps will open around Florida and Arizona. It's a World Baseball Classic year, so camp opens a little earlier than usual. Hooray for that. The sooner baseball comes, the better.
As always, there are still a ton of unsigned free agents on the board, more than enough to fill out a big league roster. So, using only unsigned free agents -- here is our Free Agent Tracker -- let's build a 25-man roster. I say we call it the All-Unsigned Team. Sound good? Here are the position players.
Catcher: Matt Wieters
First Base: Mark Trumbo
Second Base: Chase Utley
Shortstop: Stephen Drew
Third Base: Luis Valbuena
Left Field: Brandon Moss
Center Field: Austin Jackson
Right Field: Jose Bautista
Designated Hitter: Chris Carter
Bench: C Nick Hundley, IF Daniel Descalso, UTIL Ryan Raburn, OF Gregor Blanco
Easy calls at catcher, first base, third base, and right field. The current free agent middle infield market is so unbelievably thin that I'm moving Drew back to shortstop, his natural position, and going for defense over offense. Utley is pretty much the only option at second.
Among the available center fielders, Jackson offers the best combination of offense and defense, which isn't saying much. It's either him or guys like Desmond Jennings, Coco Crisp, and Michael Bourn. Similar story in left field. I'm taking Moss over Michael Saunders because he has more power and more versatility. I can stick him at first base if necessary.
There were plenty of options at first base. Ultimately, it came down to Carter and Pedro Alvarez, and I went with Carter because I already have four left-handed hitters in the lineup. He provides better balance. Also, I prefer 30-year-old Carter to 35-year old Mike Napoli. Here's my batting order:
- Valbuena
- Bautista
- Trumbo
- Moss
- Carter
- Wieters
- Utley
- Drew
- Jackson
With no true leadoff hitter, Valbuena and his .357 on-base percentage in 2016 gets the nod in the top spot. The thunder follows him, and the bottom of the lineup is what it is. My biggest concern: strikeouts. Moss (30.4 percent strikeout rate in 2016) and Carter (32.0 percent) back-to-back in the lineup will lead to a lot of rallies ending without a ball in play. What can you do?
As for the bench, I don't really have room for Napoli or Alvarez. Descalso is on the roster because I need a backup shortstop, and he's the best reserve infielder still on the market. Blanco is the versatile fourth outfielder who won't be a total zero at the plate. Raburn gives me some right-handed pop and flexibility. I value that more than another DH. I almost went with Kelly Johnson for that spot, but another lefty bat on the bench would have been overkill.
Now let's dive into the pitching staff, starting with the five-man rotation.
- RHP Jason Hammel
- RHP Doug Fister
- LHP Jonathon Niese
- RHP Jake Peavy
- LHP Jorge De La Rosa
The free agent pitching class was short on quality options to start with, and now that the best starters (Rich Hill, Ivan Nova, etc.) are off the board, we're left with the reclamation project types. All of those guys are unsigned for a reason. The market is not overlooking them. Hammel (elbow) and Niese (knee) are coming off injuries, while all the others had mediocre at best 2016 seasons.
I'm intrigued by Brett Anderson's upside, but he's rarely healthy, and I need innings. Edwin Jackson and Mat Latos were left on the cutting room floor. I'm not feeling too great about that starting five, but those are the best available options. Now here is the bullpen:
Closer: RHP Greg Holland
Setup: RHP Joe Blanton, LHP Boone Logan
Middle: LHP Jerry Blevins, RHP Sergio Romo, RHP Fernando Salas
Long: RHP Scott Feldman
Holland is a no-brainer in the ninth inning while Blanton and Logan were relatively easy calls as the setup tandem as well. I know Blanton had some high-profile meltdowns in the postseason, but he was nails during the regular season. Logan destroys lefties last year and is the best left-on-left matchup guy out there.
Picking the middle relief wasn't easy, and not because there are so many great options. Romo has a history of high-end performance and I'll roll the dice with him. Blevins gets the nod over Travis Wood as my second lefty because he's historically had more success against left-handed batters. Salas and Feldman? Well, who else was I supposed to take?
How many games does this 25-man roster of unsigned free agents win in 2017? I'll set the over/under at 74.5. The offense will sock some dingers and the bullpen will protect leads after six or seven innings, but the rotation is dicey and the middle relief isn't looking too hot. Free agency is always short on great options in mid January, and that is especially true this winter.
