by Jason Martinez
With first basemen Adam Dunn, Paul Konerko, and Carlos Peña off the board, let's take a closer look at who else is available on the free agent market. The list includes eight first basemen trying to land starting jobs. By my count, only three teams (Baltimore, San Diego, Washington) are actively looking for a starting first baseman. Others, such as Arizona, could be looking for a veteran platoon partner. The job in San Diego might only be temporary as Kyle Blanks is expected to return early in the season from Tommy John surgery. That means Baltimore and Washington are the surest bets if you're a first baseman looking for full-time work in 2011.
Adam LaRoche - The 31 year-old is coming off of a season in which he struck out a career high 172 times and walked only 48 times. However, he's hit 25 HR's in three consecutive seasons and knocked in 100 last season for the first time in his career. Combined with solid defense at first base, he could have the most value of any player on this list. He's almost guaranteed to land the starting gig in Baltimore or Washington.
Derrek Lee - Even at 35 years of age, Lee could've earned a huge payday this offseason had he not posted his lowest OPS (.775) of the past decade in '10. His .849 OPS after being traded to Atlanta, however, should help convince some team to guarantee him at least $5M on an incentive-laden one-year deal. Just a year removed from a .306-35-111 line during the '09 season, he should have more than a few teams bidding for his services. He'll be a better fit for Baltimore with the Nationals' lineup already right-handed heavy, although he's been mostly linked to the Padres, who drafted Lee back in 1993 and traded him to Florida in the Kevin Brown deal prior to the '98 season. In either case, Baltimore or San Diego, Lee is likely to be on the trading block again by the All-Star break.
Brad Hawpe - An All-Star right fielder for the Rockies in 2009, Hawpe regressed badly in 2010. Released in late August after hitting just .255 with 7 HR's, the 31 year-old signed with Tampa Bay and further decreased his value with a 7-for-39 performance over the last few weeks of the season. Some team will give him a shot because he's still fairly young and he's just one year removed from the last time he was a very good hitter.
Lyle Overbay - The left-handed hitter has never been an elite offensive first baseman but Overbay could be a good one-year stop-gap for a team that is willing to pay a few million for a guy who can give you a .250 BA, 15 HR's, 65 RBI's, and solid first base defense. He'll be 34 when the season starts.
Troy Glaus - If only the season would've ended in mid-July, Glaus (.254 BA, 14 HR, 58 RBI, 49 BB at All-Star break) might be looking forward to a minimum $8 million salary for 2011 with a good amount of interested bidders. Unfortunately for the 34 year-old, the season lasted another 2 1/2 months and his value took a nose dive as he hit just .205 with 2 HR's the rest of the way.
Nick Johnson - After missing most of 2007-08 with injuries, Johnson hit .291 with 8 HR's and 99 BB's in 133 games in 2009. But another injury-riddled season in 2010 leaves the 32 year old unlikely to find a starting gig in 2011. But there aren't too many hitters around like Johnson that are capable of drawing more walks than strikeouts. If a team values that skill and thinks he can stay healthy, maybe he gets a shot.
Russell Branyan - If it's HR's you're looking for and high strikeout totals and a low batting average don't bother you so much, then Branyan might be the first baseman you're looking for. The 34 year-old hit 25 HR's in 428 PA's last season but hit just .237 with 131 K's. That's actually not terrible when you consider the limited options available.
Jorge Cantu - Like Glaus, Cantu would've benefited from a shorter season. After hitting .299 with 8 HR's and 39 RBI's over the first two months of the season, the 28 year-old hit just .240 with 3 HR's the rest of the way. He is the youngest of this group and the most versatile so he still has plenty of value. Arizona and San Diego are potential landing spots.
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2 comments :
Baltimore - Derrek Lee - 6 mil + inc,
San Diego - Lyle Overbay - 4 mil,
Washington - Adam LaRoche - 6 mil.
Branyan/Cantu - AZ/TB
I agree, although I would hope my Padres could get Overbay for less than $3M given that he probably doesn't have too many other options to be a starting 1B. I'd say Cantu to Arizona is a fit since they already have two left-handed hitting 1B candidates (Allen, Miranda) and Branyan to TB makes a lot of sense.
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