Free Agency Review

[Troy (Cubs) (LM)]

Team	Key Signings	Grade	Review
	N/A	F-	With money to spend, the O’s did……nothing. Peter Angelos at his finest penny pinching ways. The O’s really could have used an OF and just missed out on Beltran. This teams looks set to compete, but standing pat could come back to haunt them.
	C Brian McCann; 2B Omar Infante; SP Scott Kazmir; RP Joakim Soria	A	The Yankees came in to Free Agency arguably as one of the worst teams in the league. As they stand today, they are respectable compared to where they came from. They got a bargain in 2B Omar Infante at just 4.5M a year, and locked up a top catcher in McCann. Add in cost effective arms in Kazmir and Soria, and the Yankees Free Agent runs looks pretty good. Props to Mike.
	OF Curtis Granderson; SP Tim Hudson	B-	The Jays had a need for some bats. They went out and got veteran OF Curtis Granderson at just over 8M a season. While that contract may look ugly towards the back end, it fills an immediate needs, and should help the Jays compete in the AL Beast. The Hudson signing is a head scratcher. Toronto had 7 really good SP already, the 5.25M could have been better allotted to a 1B or another OF.
	N/A	--	The Rays didn’t sign anyone in free agency, and they didn’t really need to. They are a great team without any holes, and didn’t have much cash. They were wise to stand pat and stick with the great squad they currently have.
	N/A	--	The 3rd team in the East that elected to stand pat. The Red Sox maxed out their finances early in the offseason, and didn’t have many holes to fill either.
	1B Albert Pujols; 1B Paul Konerko; SP Ervin Santana; SP Mark Buerhle; SP Ryan Dempster	B	The Tribe added some decent pieces to supplement a solid team. This could turn into an A+ if Pujols puts up a line that resembles anything like his Cardinal days. They also added 3 cheap rotation arms in Buerhle, Dempster, and Santana, which could look even better depending where Santana signs at. One problem may arise in the Indians clubhouse however, as Jose Reyes openly criticized the Dempster signing, sighting a strong hate for “Canadians”.
	C Carlos Ruiz; 1B James Loney; OF Carlos Beltran; OF Andre Ethier; OF David Murphy; SP Phil Hughes; SP Roberto Hernandez	B+	The White Sox were very active on the free agent front, signing 7 players to major league contracts. They did very well securing low cost, proven veterans to contribute immediately, Ruiz, Loney, and Beltran particularly. I question giving Ethier a 5 year deal, and Hernandez a 2nd guaranteed year, but the Sox did well, and the Fans should be excited for the upcoming season.
	OF Carl Crawford; OF Marlon Byrd; OF David DeJesus	B-	The Twins elected to sign a trio of OF’s to roam Target field. They got great deals on Byrd and DeJesus, at just 2.8M combined for the two. Signing Crawford to a 5 year, 30.5M deal may backfire, as that 5 year commitment seems fairly steep for a 32 year old who hasn’t performed at a high level since 2010.
	N/A	--	No money, no free agents, no holes.
	N/A	--	Management elected not to enter the free agent market, as many free agents were well out of the Tigers range of affordability.
	2B Alexander Guerrero; SP Wandy Rodriguez; RP Joe Nathan	B-	The A’s gambled on the Cuban import Alexander Guerrero, signing him to 5 year, 37.5M deal. Not much is known about Guerrero, but if he proves to be anything like the other Cuban signings to come abroad, this may look really good for the A’s. GM JRussi also added 2 veteran arms to stabilize his pitching staff, getting Wandy to place at the back end of the rotation, and adding Joe Nathan to slam the door shut in the 9th.
	N/A	C-	M’s had a few bucks, a quite a few holes on their roster. The pitching staff and lineup are very weak, they could have improved with a signing or two. Ownership claimed they didn’t want to block any of their young budding stars that are on the verge of breaking into the show, and I don’t blame them.
	C Dioner Navarro; 1B Jose Dariel Abreu; SP Masahiro Tanaka; SP Hiroki Kuroda; RP Jesse Crain; RP Boone Logan; RP Joaquin Benoit	A	Everything is bigger in Texas. The Astros nabbed the 2 biggest International Free Agents on the market, dishing out a whopping 180M over 5 years combined for Masahiro Tanaka and Jose Dariel Abreu. The Stros didn’t stop there either, adding 3 RP’s to stabilize a weak bullpen, adding Kuroda to mentor Tanaka and help shoulder the load, and also added a 2nd catcher in Navarro to provide insurance and nab some AB’s as the DH. The Astros merchandising revenue has skyrocketed in Japan, and the city of Houston has a buzz about its baseball team for the first time in a while.
	1B Ryan Howard; 2B Robinson Cano; OF Jayson Werth; SP Matt Garza; RP Fernando Rodney	C+	Just like the Astros, the Rangers went big in free agency. They signed the most expensive contract during the offseason, giving Robinson Cano 27M annually through 2018. The Rangers could be in trouble with 5 year contracts for 31 year old Cano, 34 year olds Jayson Werth and Ryan Howard, and oft injured 30 year old SP Matt Garza. These contracts provide value to the team immediately, however, they look bleak in the future. A for the short term, D for the future.
	N/A	--	The Angels claimed that they wanted to stay under the luxury tax threshold, and they accomplished that. They have a solid group, and didn’t want to fool with the clubhouse chemistry they currently have.
	1B/OF Corey Hart; SP Dan Haren; RP Jose Veras	C	Some nice depth moves by the Nationals that complement their roster and cap situation. The Nationals have the cap space next year to sign their arbitration eligible players and make more complementary moves to keep this core group playing together for a few years.
	SP Bartolo Colon; SP Jason Vargas	D	Two nice depth signings for the starting rotation. The Braves would grade near the Nationals and Rockies if it were not for their cap situation.
	C AJ Pierzynski; 1B Kendrys Morales; 2B Chase Utley; SS Stephen Drew; SS Jhonny Peralta; SP Ricky Nolasco	A	The Marlins spent $46.3M in 2014 cap on free agents, and still have $25.92 in cap space remaining. The completely rebuilt infield has now become a strength with the exception being third base. There were no free agent third baseman in the batches.
	RP Grant Balfour	C	The Phillies add Grant Balfour to add leverage in deciding on Jim Johnson's arbitration salary.
	SS Derek Jeter; SP Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez; SP Josh Johnson	B	The Mets strengthened their starting rotation and added some more SS competition, addressing the needs on their roster. They have $21.61M in cap space remaining, and have a similar third base situation to the Marlins.
	1B Mike Napoli	A	The Reds fill an immediate need at 1B with Mike Napoli on a short term deal. Perfect move to complete their lineup.
	SP Scott Feldman	C	Underrated free agent signing considering how much the real life Houston Astros invested in Feldman (3 years @ $10.0M). He's worth the contract just for the starts and innings he should pitch.
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	1B Justin Morneau; SP Bronson Arroyo	C	The Rockies fill out their roster by adding 1B Justin Morneau. Hindsight is 20/20, as I compare the Morneau deal to the Napoli deal for less years and money.
	N/A	--	The NL West had a lackluster offseason, Free Agent wise. No money, more problems. (See Below)
	N/A	C-	They had a few dollars, they are probably going to need a pitcher or 2 to reach the minimums weekly.
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