Last week we previewed some of the biggest stars in the game that are on new teams, ranging from Gerrit Cole and Mookie Betts, to guys like Corey Kluber and Anthony Rendon. And although there’s been a more active winter hot stove than in prior years, there are still names floating around out there who can help a team in 2020.
Spring training games are underway, but whether by a late injury or merely a desire to bring in an added bat or arm, here are the five most notable names still without a home in Major League Baseball:
1) Yasiel Puig:
He comes with some baggage, warranted or not, that will scare some teams off. He also has obvious talent, with three straight years of at least 23 home runs. At age 29 he is what he is at this point – a right fielder who will hit .260 to .270 with somewhere between 20 and 29 homers with a league-average OPS. After splitting time last year between the Reds and Indians, he’ll be on his fourth team in three seasons whenever he does sign. Once a seeming lock for a $100-plus million deal, he’ll be a bargain for a lower-tiered team.
2) Scooter Gennett:
In 2018 with Cincinnati Gennett had an All-Star season, hitting .310 with 23 home runs (and it was arguably not as good as his 2017 year). He was making his case as one of the better second basemen in baseball. And then 2019 happened. He started the year with an injury and in 21 games with the Reds hit just .217 with three extra base hits. He was then shipped to San Francisco, where in an identical 21 games hit .234 with a pair of home runs and 21 strikeouts in 67 plate-appearances. A classic bounce-back candidate, the Cubs are reportedly interested.
3) Addison Russell:
For starters, his end with the Cubs wasn’t the prettiest, with a domestic violence suspension and a years-long tension around it. Then consider that he hit .237 in 82 games with one of his worst defensive seasons of his career, and it’s easy to see why Russell is still on the open market. But he can play second base or shortstop, he’s only 26 and he has 117 career postseason plate appearances. Someone is going to take a chance on a former first-round pick theoretically in the prime of his career.
4) Collin McHugh:
Arguably Houston’s best starter during their disastrous stretch of 100-loss campaigns, McHugh became a bullpen force in 2018, pitching 72.1 innings to the tune of a 1.99 earned run average with 94 strikeouts and one of the lowest walk rates of his career. His 2019 numbers weren’t nearly as good – the ERA ballooned to 4.70, the walk rate increased while the strikeout rate decreased and the velocity started to dip – and he got hurt in August. At 32, he still has some value at a reduced rate, and you can never have enough bullpen arms.
5) Russell Martin:
His peak is long gone, but an experienced veteran who knows his role and has played in 10 different postseasons can be an invaluable clubhouse guy. Enter Martin, who’s played about half of the games in each of the past three seasons for Toronto (2017 & 2018) and Los Angeles (2019). Never a high average guy to begin with, he’ll likely flirt with .230 at best, bring a little pop now and then and be a positive influence. Going for Martin is everything just listed. Going against him, though, is the fact that he probably wants to go to a legitimate contender (he’s never won a World Series). The listed attributes are better suited toward a younger bunch.
Others available: Melky Cabrera, Andrew Cashner, Sam Dyson, Tim Beckham, Jacoby Ellsbury, Matt Harvey, Fernando Rodney
