With less than a week to go before pitchers and catchers report to spring training, there's no shortage of free agents still looking for a contract.
In an effort to showcase the top remaining players available on the market, MLB editors Jonah Birenbaum (Team A) and Bryan Mcwilliam (Team B) each drafted a 25-man roster, and projected which team would have a better shot at winning a one-game playoff.
Team A
STARTING LINEUP
| Order | Player | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Angel Pagan | LF |
| 2 | Franklin Gutierrez | CF |
| 3 | Mike Napoli* | 1B |
| 4 | Ryan Raburn | RF |
| 5 | Justin Morneau | DH |
| 6 | Dioner Navarro | C |
| 7 | Aaron Hill | 3B |
| 8 | Chase Utley | 2B |
| 9 | Alexei Ramirez | SS |
*Napoli signed with Rangers after published
BENCH
| Player | Position |
|---|---|
| Steve Clevenger | C |
| Billy Butler | 1B |
| Gordon Beckham | IF |
| Drew Stubbs | OF |
ROTATION
| ORDER | PITCHER | HAND |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colby Lewis | RHP |
| 2 | Jorge De La Rosa | LHP |
| 3 | Jered Weaver | RHP |
| 4 | C.J. Wilson | LHP |
| 5 | Tim Lincecum | RHP |
BULLPEN
| ROLE | PITCHER | HAND |
|---|---|---|
| CL | David Hernandez | RHP |
| SU | Luke Hochevar | RHP |
| SU | Charlie Furbush | LHP |
| MID | Joe Blanton | RHP |
| MID | Tommy Hunter | RHP |
| MID | Seth Maness | RHP |
| LR | Yusmeiro Petit | RHP |
Operating under the presumption that Team B would start de facto ace Travis Wood in the one-game playoff, I privileged position players who excel against left-handed pitching (e.g. Ryan Raburn, Franklin Gutierrez, Alexei Ramirez), and tried to load up on switch-hitters to gain as many platoon advantages as possible should it turn into a bullpen game early. Speaking of which, I did my best to gobble up the best relievers available - David Hernandez, Joe Blanton, and Luke Hochevar each had a strikeout rate above 24.8 percent in 2016 - as opponents have managed an .809 OPS off Colby Lewis, one of the top starters still on the market, when facing the 37-year-old right-hander for the third time in a game throughout his career. - Birenbaum
Team B
STARTING LINEUP
| Order | Player | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Bourn | CF |
| 2 | Coco Crisp | RF |
| 3 | Matt Wieters | C |
| 4 | Chris Carter* | 1B |
| 5 | Pedro Alvarez | 3B |
| 6 | Adam Lind | DH |
| 7 | Nolan Reimold | LF |
| 8 | Kelly Johnson | 2B |
| 9 | Erick Aybar | SS |
*Carter signed with Yankees after publication
BENCH
| Player | Position |
|---|---|
| A.J. Pierzynski | C |
| Ryan Howard | 1B |
| Daniel Descalso | IF |
| Jeff Francoeur | OF |
ROTATION
| ORDER | PITCHER | HAND |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Travis Wood | LHP |
| 2 | Doug Fister | RHP |
| 3 | Jonathon Niese | LHP |
| 4 | Jake Peavy | RHP |
| 5 | Mat Latos | RHP |
BULLPEN
| ROLE | PITCHER | HAND |
|---|---|---|
| CL | Jonathan Papelbon | RHP |
| SU | Tom Wilhelmsen | RHP |
| SU | Kevin Jepsen | RHP |
| MID | Javier Lopez | LHP |
| MID | Chris Capuano | LHP |
| MID | Anthony Bass | RHP |
| LR | Carlos Villanueva | RHP |
When drafting this team, three factors were taken into account: best player available at the time, speed, and power. While the free-agent crop wasn't bursting with top-tier talent, there were plenty of players with wheels and pop. Despite being on the wrong side of 30, Bourn, Crisp, and Aybar can still swipe a bag (the three combined for 28 last season), while the heart of this lineup - Wieters, Carter, Alvarez, and Lind - smashed a combined 100 home runs last season. With a bullpen consisting of three former closers throwing in the seventh, eighth, and ninth, if Team B can establish an early lead heading into the late innings - which is certainly doable with this kind of production potential in the lineup - a wild-card win appears to be a given. - Mcwilliam