Free agency officially started at 12:01 a.m. ET Tuesday, and this week CBS Sports is going to break down the top free agents at each position. And rank them. What fun would this be without rankings?
This offseason features one of the weakest free-agent classes in recent memory. This bunch is no different. Here was my reaction when putting together the list:
let's check in on the middle infield options available in MLB free agency pic.twitter.com/ZI2WTEqhhS
— Matt Snyder (@MattSnyderCBS) November 11, 2016
As such, we're only going up to five. If we were going to list definite, everyday starters, the list would likely be just one. Maybe three if we're being generous. Don't say you weren't warned.
The upside is this won't take very long.
A career year in the power department before free agency was good timing for Neil Walker. A back injury that requires surgery ending the season was decidedly not.
That's where we are with Walker. He's easily the best option on the board among middle infielders in free agency. A career .273 hitter with good power, Walker hit .282/.347/.476 (118 OPS+) with 23 homers (matching a career high) and 55 RBI in only 113 games last season. A season of full health at that rate and he was going to easily get to 30 home runs.
He was previously a high doubles guy, too, averaging 29 per season from 2010-15.
Clearly, we're talking about a superior bat at second base.
Of course, Walker might not even stay on this list. The Mets have extended a qualifying offer and it's possible Walker takes it and then hopes to re-establish value with a healthy back.
And then there's the chance his back will be a problem the rest of his career. Front office types are leery of back injuries, especially those requiring surgery. Walker's was a herniated disk, and the Mets have since expressed that they are comfortable with his progress (otherwise they wouldn't have extended the qualifying offer).
Walker is 31, coming off a great offensive season and now is coming back from surgery. Good luck predicting what kind of offers he gets.
Utility man Sean Rodriguez picked the right time for his breakout season. Through 2015, Rodriguez was a career .228/.295/.371 hitter with a career high of 12 homers in a season. Last season, he hit .270/.349/.510 (126 OPS+) with 18 homers and 56 RBI in just 342 plate appearances. That's a huge home run rate increase, especially at age 31.
There have to be questions about Rodriguez being able to handle an everyday job, especially at second base. He spent more innings at first than second last season, but he also played more at shortstop than first. For what it's worth, most defensive metrics like him fine at second.
This is the market where he gets a starting second base job and makes a lot of money, isn't it? The conditions are ripe for Rodriguez.
Chase Utley was better last season than in 2015, but he's still a shadow of the perennial star that was prime Utley. He hit .252/.319/.396 with 26 doubles and 14 homers before a brutal playoff showing (.107/.219/.107 in 32 plate appearances).
The lefty-swinging Utley saw his exposure to southpaws limited down the stretch, too, but he can still hit righties. Maybe he'll find a platoon job? During the regular season he slashed .273/.343/.425 against right-handed pitchers.
Utley's veteran presence and career resume will surely factor in to him getting a job somewhere, should he not change his mind and decide to retire.
Possibly fun item of interest: If Utley gets hit by a pitch at least 10 times next season, he'll join Don Baylor, Jason Kendall, Craig Biggio, Ron Hunt, Frank Robinson and Minnie Minoso as the only players to be hit by at least 10 pitches in more than 10 different seasons.
Johnny Giavotella finally got at least semi-regular playing time for the Angels in 2015 after getting very few chances with Kansas City in the previous four seasons. In the past two years combined with the Angels, Giavotella slashed .267/.305/.375 (90 OPS+). He accounted for 1.5 WAR, so he's above replacement level, but on a seasonal basis it's not by much. Generally speaking, an average starter should be around 2.0 per season. So we're already in backup territory.
Being a platoon player shouldn't help matters much, either, as Giavotella is a right-hander hitter who is worse against lefties than righties.
Mostly a utility man or bench bat, Kelly Johnson still fits here. After being traded to the Mets, Johnson hit .268/.328/.459 with nine homers and 24 RBI in 201 plate appearances. There's some juice left in there for the soon-to-be 35 year old. He'll get a job.
Possible fun tidbit: Johnson's been traded to the Mets two straight seasons. What if he signs somewhere else and is traded back to them for a third straight year?
What's this, no shortstops?
Well, you have Rodriguez, I guess. Erick Aybar and Alexei Ramirez (keep in mind he slashed .245/.282/.346 in the last two years combined, doesn't run much anymore and is 35) would be next. Yuck.
Other (dis-?) honorable mention: Jimmy Parades, Daniel Descalso, Gordon Beckham, Eric Sogard, Ruben Tejada
