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Season 15 Free Agency Preview
Season 15 is upon us, and it's time to get rolling with offseason free agency. This year's class is heavily weighted towards pitching, and is top heavy with two Cy Young award winning studs in 3 time winner Posada and one-time winner Mouton. The hitting class is fairly weak, but there are a few good finds out there nonetheless. It will be an interesting free agency period for sure, good luck to all, here's the complete top 10! No, make that a top 11! We missed a key player on our first go-around.
1. Matty Posada, 31, SP
Type A Free Agent
Key Stat: 2.63 career ERA
Salary Over/Under: 5 years, $95 million
Possible Destinations: Chicago (AL), Pittsburgh, Detroit, Oklahoma City
Signed with Nashville - 5 years, $102.8 million
It's not often that the opportunity comes along to land a 3-time former Cy Young winner, but alas the opportunity is for the taking this off-season. Posada is elite across the board and sure-fire ace. At his next destination he will be looking to cement his legacy as one of, if not the, greatest pitcher in Kenny Powers history. He will not come cheap, however.
2. Stewart Mouton, 32, SP
Type A Free Agent
Key Stat: 2.64 career ERA
Salary Over/Under: 5 years, $90 million
Possible Destinations: Nashville, Seattle, Chicago (AL), Durham
Signed with Honolulu - 5 years, $91 million
Mouton, a former Cy Young award winner himself, seems every bit as elite as Posada. He has the same incredible career ERA, and great ratings across the board. He hardly is a consolation prize if you don't land Posada, he could be just as good. Someone will land an ace by signing Mouton, but again it will be costly.
3. Chipper Nippert, 31, SS
Type A Free Agent
Key Stat: 41 HR 120 RBI average
Salary Over/Under: 4 years, $62 million
Possible Destinations: Helena, Oklahoma City, New Britain, Durham
Signed with Seattle - 5 years, $75.5 million
Despite lackluster splits, Nippert has managed to flat out crush the ball throughout his career thanks to elite contact and power. Still, the subpar splits may lead to some variability in batting average, but he should still crush a ton of home runs. His biggest asset is his plus fielding ratings that making him a realistic play at shortstop. That kind of power and contact at shortstop is pretty rare, making him a major asset to whomever lands him. Age is a slight concern, but he should be able to put up similar numbers for a few more seasons, if not more.
4. Brooks Michaels, 29, SP
Type A Free Agent
Key Stat: 4.07 career ERA
Salary Over/Under: 5 years, $58 million
Possible Destinations: Oklahoma City, New Britain, Detroit, Helena
Signed with Durham - 5 years, $42.5 million
Michaels is not quite as elite as the top 2, but can still be a solid add to a rotation. The big difference between Michaels and the top 2 is pitch quality, but he is still a great SP. His career ERA suffered a bit in Dover, so he is better than it indicates, and he is only 29 years old, which means he should be just as effective at the end of his contract as he is now.
5. Herbert Davis, 35, RP
Type A Free Agent
Key Stat: 3.48 career ERA
Salary Over/Under: 3 years, $36 million
Possible Destinations: Durham, Seattle, Honolulu, Oakland
Signed with Seattle - 3 years, $22.8 million
Davis is an innings eater RP that is still going strong at age 35. Hard to say that he really has any weaknesses in his arsenal, as we give him plus ratings across the board. Age may be a slight factor at this point, particularly if teams are thinking of a 5 year deal, but he should still be extremely solid for the next few seasons for sure.
6. Harry Vargas, 37, SP
Type A Free Agent
Key Stat: 3.60 career ERA
Salary Over/Under: 2 years, $22 million
Possible Destinations: Pawtucket, Scranton, Buffalo, New Britain
Signed with Helena - 2 years, $13.3 million
Still going strong at age 37, showing little signs of decline in his output, Vargas will be a solid add to just about any rotation. He's yet another pitcher with strong ratings across the board in this free agent class. The question is, how much longer can he produce at an elite level, and how much will owners be willing to pay given that fact.
7. Jose Alonso, 33, 3B
Type A Free Agent
Key Stat: .295 career AVG
Salary Over/Under: 3 years, $30 million
Possible Destinations: Chicago (AL), Oklahoma City, Tampa Bay, Nashville
Signed with Pittsburgh - 3 years, $26.25 million
In a very weak free agent class of hitters, Alonso earns the nod as one of the top offensive players available. He is great in the field, and should work anywhere except SS, which is exceptional for this stage in his career. He has elite contact, and is great against righties and has a solid batting eye at the plate. He should have a few good years left in him, and has championship experience, winning 4 rings with OKC.
8. Reid Fassero, 33, RP
Type A Free Agent
Key Stat: 3.83 career ERA
Salary Over/Under: 3 years, $27 million
Possible Destinations: Seattle, Scranton, Pittsburgh, Cleveland
Signed with Pittsburgh - 2 years, $4.5 million
A returnee from last year's list, Fassero didn't exactly conquer the world during his 1 year deal in Cleveland. Still, he's a very solid RP capable of eating a lot of innings, so that definitely has value. Although not as good as Davis, he is two years younger and is capable of bettering his mediocre performance from last season.
9. John Saitou, 35, SP
No Designation
Key Stat: 3.43 career ERA
Salary Over/Under: 3 years, $27 million
Possible Destinations: Scranton, Pittsburgh, Oakland, St. Louis
Signed with Detroit - 2 years, $10.4 million
Saitou, although not as elite as some of the other options in the class, could be a nice, cheaper alternative to some of the big guns that will be more expensive. His last two seasons in Pawtucket weren't great, but he still has very good control, and pitch quality, and nice splits. He doesn't keep the ball down or throw with a great deal of velocity, but can still be a sold #3/#4 type for at least a few more seasons.
10. Edwin Pierzynski, 28, 3B
Type B Free Agent
Key Stat: 186 career HR
Salary Over/Under: 4 years, $32 million
Possible Destinations: Helena, Nashville, Honolulu, Toronto
Signed with Pittsburgh - 5 years, $34.3 million
Pierzynski isn't exactly an elite hitter, but in this weak offensive free agent class, he makes the top ten. His last few seasons have been disappointing at the plate, but he still has plus power, and a good batting eye. His mediocre contact and RH split, are a bit of a drain on his batting average, and that is his downside. He can still play a decent 3rd base in the field, and is only 28 years old.
11. Pep Hasegawa, 32, DH
No Designation
Key Stat: 285 career HR
Salary Over/Under: 2 years, $9 million
Possible Destinations: Durham, Chicago (AL), Helena, Pittsburgh
Signed with Tampa Bay - 3 years, $9.3 million
Pep is one of the best hitters available with great power and nice splits. His contact and batting eye are mediocre, which has resulted in him struggling some years. That, and the fact that he played most of his career in Seattle, but even a move to St. Louis didn't help much. I guess we still think he's capable of doing better, and would be a nice addition as a DH in the AL.
