Which MLB Teams Are Built To Expire After 2008

As the middle of August is upon us, the baseball season is continuing to get increasingly interesting. It appears that the Angels are the only team that has a ticket punched for the postseason.

Other divisions continue to have their landscapes change, even after the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, with names like Manny Ramirez and Ken Griffey Jr. moving on the last day of July, and a similarly imposing figure of Adam Dunn. The end of the 2008 MLB season has a lot left in store for baseball fans.

But after the dust of the World Series settles, who's on the short end of the stick?

There are a lot of teams that are in the mix for October glory that have payrolls stacked for today, but are leaving the future in the hands of the minors, the wallet of the owner, and a certain amount of luck.

Not every year do you see stories like Josh Hamilton, or the White Sox trading a low level, minor league, first-base prospect for a castaway OF named Carlos Quentin. So who's got the most to lose after 2008? Let's look at who's got free agents walking away after this year. (The following lists don't include players that have a player, team, or mutual option for 2009.)

Looking at the American League first, the team that appears to be built to last the most is also the cheapest and youngest: the Tampa Bay Rays. Of their regular contributors, they stand to lose only RP Chad Bradford, OF Jonny Gomes, and INF/OF Eric Hinske.

Minnesota also appears to have their ducks in a row, having just SS Adam Everett, INF Nick Punto, and OF Jason Kubel in walk years. The two Sox (Boston and Chicago) seem to have a fair amount of talent becoming available off their rosters, but both seem well prepared for the loses.

Boston's largest potential loss is C Jason Varitek, with pitchers Paul Byrd, Curt Schilling, Tim Wakefield, and Mike Timlin also finishing their deals. Chicago has an intriguing mix of players working on expiring paper. Three-quarters of their opening-day infield are scheduled to be leaving in 2009: Juan Uribe, Orlando Cabrera, and Joe Crede.

The Crede situation is especially interesting because minor leaguer Josh Fields, the heir apparent at third for the Pale Hose, hasn't established himself defensively and has shown a similar issue with staying healthy to Crede, who's back is the biggest concern teams will having when paying him this winter.

Also leaving Chicago will be stretch-run-rental Ken Griffey Jr., who had his contract buyout of $4 million split between Cincy and the White Sox as part of the trade July 31.

The two American League teams with the most to lose this winter are the Yankees and Angels. The Yankees don't appear to have enough gas in the tank to catch both Boston AND Tampa, and they have some glaring holes about to open on their roster.

A team that is losing its grip on October because of thin starting pitching is looking at Mike Mussina, perhaps their most consistent starter, and Andy Pettitte both being in their final year under contract.

They also have OF Bobby Abreu and rentals Xavier Nady and Ivan Rodriguez ready to move on. Something tells me that Hank Steinbrenner won't have any problems turning over the roster if they go home at the end of September.

The Angels are a fascinating bunch, though. They are running away with the best record in the American League, owning a 15+ game lead in mid-August. But look at the list of players they have the potential to be missing next summer: 1B Mark Teixeira, SP Jon Garland, CL Francisco Rodriguez, UTIL Chone Figgins, OF Juan Rivera, IF Maicer Izturis Again, and this list isn't even including the younger players they have that are eligible for arbitration and the veterans with options.

The Angels certainly appear to be going for it all right now, with the acquisition of Teixeira, but after watching them go out and spend on the likes of Gary Matthews Jr. and Torii Hunter the last couple winters, they will certainly reload well.

The National League has some mixes on rosters that make me scratch my head. The team with the best record in the NL, the Chicago Cubs, have what appears to be the least to lose this winter, having blown a substantial amount of coin keeping the likes of Carlos Zambrano, Derrek Lee, and Aramis Ramirez happy, while adding Kosuke Fukudome and Alfonso Soriano the last two winters.

They have a free-agent list headlined by Kerry Wood, who is working on a one-year deal because of his injury-filled resume. He has indicated he wants to retire a Cub, and his job as closer this year would seem to lead the Cubs to be inclined to keep him around.

After Wood, the Cubs have their two rental CFs, Jim Edmonds and Reed Johnson, on short-term deals, as well as struggling RP Bobby Howry. Perhaps the biggest payday winner on the Cubs' roster will be All-Star Ryan Dempster. However, he couldn't have picked a worse winter to become a free agent.

That's because the team chasing the Cubs, the Milwaukee Brewers, have the top of their rotation on the way out. The Brew Crew gave every indication this season with the moves they've made that they want it now and will worry about 2009 when it gets here.

SPs Ben Sheets and CC Sabathia are both becoming available, along with mid-season pick-up 2B Ray Durham, veteran C Jason Kendall, and disappointing RP Eric Gagne.

The Dodgers seem to have the best luck, if you will, coming up this winter. They have some dead weight ready to leave southern California, again, not including players with options (ehem...Manny...ehem...).

2B Jeff Kent, SS Rafael Furcal, and INF Nomar Garciaparra are amongst the players that give the Dodgers perhaps the greatest fantasy team of 2001...and they've struggled to emerge from the weakest division in baseball because when they offered them their contracts, they forgot that it's 2008 now.

They also have SP Derek Lowe and injured CL Takashi Saito in their walk years, along with deadline pick-up Casey Blake. With their issues in the rotation, with guys under contract like Jason Schmidt, I think letting a couple of these guys go in favor of younger, cheaper, better players is probably overwhelmingly enticing to Joe Torre and staff.

Staying in the West, the Diamondbacks will have the tallest free agents in baseball when Randy Johnson and Adam Dunn enter free agency. Starting C Chris Snyder, 2B Orlando Hudson, and relievers Chad Qualls, Juan Cruz, and Brandon Lyon are around for the taking as well. 

The St Louis Cardinals also have a well-known name amongst the overachieving unknowns that are in danger of leaving the Arched City. Closer Jason Isringhausen will likely not be back in St Louis, but the likes of Todd Wellemeyer, Braden Looper, and Kyle Lohse have carried the Cardinals into, at worst, contention for the wild card to this point, and all three are in short-term deals.

The National League East, with all the talent, power, and nearly 15 MVP candidates, boasts some huge names and big-time players that could be in different uniforms next year.

Florida is so young that they have most of their nucleus intact, with their spectacled closer Kevin Gregg, power-hitting utility man Jorge Cantu, and former World Series hero Luis Gonzalez on their short list of candidates for free agency.

The Mets will probably watch Moises Alou retire, but what becomes of Pedro Martinez this winter? Aaron Heilman, Duaner Sanchez, Ryan Church, and recently-revived SP Oliver Perez are also in line to lose their Flushing feeling.

The Phillies could be looking for a loan this winter. Pat Burrell is having a monster season...and earning some big coin in the process. But also on a one-year contract is Ryan Howard, who, with Chase Utley and Jimmie Rollins, is being looked at to carry the Phils for another decade.

Will the Phillies have enough money to keep both Burrell and Howard? And will OF Jayson Werth be the odd-man out when it comes to the money game? The Ancient One, Jaime Moyer, and fellow relic Scott Eyre, are both probably going to be casualties this winter, but Joe Blanton and Ryan Madsen might be some great bargain shopping this winter.

All in all, this winter's crop of free agents has a great deal of top-tier talent that will, as every winter tends to do, change the dynamics in every division in baseball. But for the teams chasing the dream right now, some have more to lose this fall than just games.