MLB Trade Rumors: Last-Minute Roster Additions For All 30 MLB Teams
Spring Training is right around the corner, and team rosters are beginning to shape up, as the majority of the chips have fallen in this year's free agent class.
That doesn't mean the Hot Stove has been turned off, however, and there are still a number of moves to be made that could affect the 2011 season greatly.
Here is a predicted last-minute roster addition for all 30 MLB teams, as everyone looks to add that one player that will push them over the top.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Pedro Feliz
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While most signs point to the Diamondbacks being finished with their off season moves, they could still use a backup option at third base, as the bounce back season of Melvin Mora may have been an fluke, considering he is 38 years old.
Feliz days of being a starting caliber third baseman may be behind him, but he would still make a decent bat off the bench and an insurance policy should Mora falter, and he should come at a relatively cheap price.
Atlanta Braves: Andruw Jones
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The Braves have done a nice job of late infusing some young talent into their lineup, and they will be counting heavily on a number of unproven talents this coming season.
That said, the biggest question mark may be center field, as Nate McLouth was far from the player he was as an All-Star with the Pirates, hitting just .190 last season, and the Braves would be wise to at least find a platoon partner for him.
Jones has a history with the team, and he proved that he is at least a useful power bat off the bench with the White Sox last season. A reunion could be the answer for both sides here.
Baltimore Orioles: Kevin Gregg
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With the recent news that closer Alfredo Simon has been linked to a New Year's Eve murder case, that leaves the Orioles in need of an arm to fill out the back end of their bullpen.
Mike Gonzalez has some closing experience, but he has shown to be better in a setup role, and even if he is asked to close, the team would need a viable backup option. Gregg is coming off of a solid season with the Blue Jays and may come a bit cheaper than other remaining arms such as Grant Balfour and Jon Rauch
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Boston Red Sox: Brian Fuentes
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Despite bringing back Hideki Okajima, the Red Sox are still in the market for another left handed reliever to fill out their bullpen, with unproven arms such as Rich Hill and Andrew Miller currently in line to play a fairly large role.
Fuentes is perhaps the best lefty still on the market, and he has more late inning experience than anyone on the Red Sox roster.
Chicago Cubs: Matt Garza
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Chances are the Cubs are finished making moves this off season and will instead be gearing up for next offseason, when they will have a good deal of money coming off the books.
That said, if they do choose to make a splash, there has been a good deal of talks surrounding Garza this off season, and he would give the Cubs a front line starter to anchor the rotation and take some pressure off of the always volatile Carlos Zambrano.
He would come at the price of a few top prospects, but he could also see a spike in his value with a move to the National League.
Chicago White Sox: Heath Bell
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The White Sox are in need of a closer after non-tendering Bobby Jenks, and while they have been linked to Rafael Soriano, Kenny Williams is among the most agressive GM's in baseball, and he could be looking bigger.
The team will need to shed some payroll, and Mark Teahen could be involved in the deal, as he is due $10.25 million over the next two seasons. If the White Sox were to package Teahen along with top prospects Tyler Flowers and Dayan Viciedo and some cash, they could net Bell.
Cincinnati Reds: Edgar Renteria
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Last season, the Reds made a late offseason move to bring in veteran shortstop Orlando Cabrera, as the team seemed reluctant to turn the reigns over to Paul Janish.
Cabrera provided a needed veteran presence in the clubhouse, and although his numbers were not quite where they have been in the past, he was at least an adequate offensive shortstop.
Renteria has received little interest on the free agent market this offseason after claiming to be insulted by the Giants' $1 million offer to retain him, and if the Reds up that offer just a bit, he could fill the same role Cabrera did last season.
Cleveland Indians: Bartolo Colon
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The Indians are in need of a veteran arm to fill out what is largely a young and unproven rotation, and they could look no further than a former Indian in Colon.
Colon last pitched in the majors with the White Sox in 2009, but he is looking to make a comeback after pitching well in the Dominican Winter League, going 2-1 with a 1.93 ERA in seven starts.
Colorado Rockies: Josh Fogg
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The Rockies have already had a huge off season, locking up both Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez to long-term deals, but they could still have another, albeit smaller move, in them before the offseason comes to a close.
In need of an arm to compete for the fifth spot in the rotation or serve as the long man, the Rockies could opt for a low cost option in someone such as Josh Fogg, who pitched well for the Rockies two seasons ago, with a 3.74 ERA in 24 appearances, one start.
Detroit Tigers: Brad Penny
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The Tigers have already made a splash this offseason, first by re-signing Brandon Inge and Jhonny Peralta to shore up the left side of their infield, along with right fielder Magglio Ordonez. They didn't stop there, however, as they also landed one of the biggest bats on the market in Victor Martinez.
One spot that can still be improved is their rotation, and the team would like to bring in a starter to at least provide some competition for Phil Coke and Armando Galarraga at the back end of the rotation. Penny has spent the bulk of his career in the NL and is coming off of an injury, but he could be in position for a bounce back season and should come at a fair price.
Florida Marlins: Laynce Nix
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The Marlins, as always, are on a tight budget, and they have already spent some money on Javier Vazquez to help round out what should be a formidable rotation.
Their only real remaining need, per se, would be to find a left handed hitter to come off the bench. There are a number of low cost options, such as Mark Kotsay, Gabe Gross, Hank Blalock, and even Jason Giambi, but I think Nix is the best fit.
Houston Astros: Joe Beimel
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The Astros are in full rebuild mode, and their big moves of the offseason were re-signing Brett Myers and bringing in super utility player Bill Hall to play second base. Their biggest weakness at the moment, aside from the inexperience of their offense, is their bullpen.
With Matt Lindstrom out and Brandon Lyon in at closer, the entire bullpen is now that much more inexperienced and is also largely right handed. The team's final move should be to bring in a veteran lefty, and Beimel is among the most worked lefties in all of baseball. Also, expect Jeff Keppinger to be elsewhere when Spring Training kicks off.
Kansas City Royals: Jeff Suppan
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There is no question the Royals need pitching, and they could sign a handful of veterans to compete for as many as three spots in the rotation behind Luke Hochevar and Kyle Davies.
Suppan is finally out from under the ridiculous contract that he received from the Brewers, and while he is no longer a threat to win 15 games, he is an innings eater, and he would add a cheap, veteran presence to a very young rotation.
Expect the team to also target bounce back guys like Jeremy Bonderman, Doug Davis, Ian Snell, and a handful of other, similarly unimpressive options.
Los Angeles Angels: Johnny Damon
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In what will almost certainly go down as the worst offseason of the year, the Angels missed out on their top target, Carl Crawford, to the Red Sox and now seem poised to miss out on their other main target in third baseman Adrian Beltre.
For a team that has money to spend, and is a few pieces away from contending, anyone they sign at this point will be a disappointment. That said, they need a DH/outfielder type who could also lead-off, and Damon at least fills that role.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Marcus Thames
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The Dodgers, more than anything they could get from a free agent, need some of the their internal parts to bounce back, most notably Matt Kemp. A return to form for some of their own guys should go a long ways towards a return to contention.
The biggest remaining hole seems to be left field, where the job currently belongs to Jay Gibbons. That said, the team is a lefty-heavy lineup, and the team will be in the market for at least a right handed platoon player to join Gibbons, if not a full-time starter. Thames has been very good of the bench for the Yankees the past few seasons and could be a 25-30 HR guy with full time action.
Milwaukee Brewers: Jerry Hairston
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The Brewers had two options this offseason. They could have pushed hard to deal Prince Fielder and looked to the future, or they could have made one last play at what could be a wide open NL Central. The acquisition of Shaun Marcum and Zack Greinke was a clear decision to go with the latter.
With those moves, the Brewers look to be done, although they are weak at shortstop and in center field with Yuniesky Betancourt and Carlos Gomez, respectively. If he comes at a reasonably price, Hairston would give them valuable depth and a backup option should Betancourt falter.
Minnesota Twins: Carl Pavano
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The Twins have opened their wallets in the past two seasons, locking up Joe Mauer, then making a move to acquire Japanese batting champ Tsuyoshi Nishioka. However, they would like to re-sign Jim Thome and Carl Pavano, who were huge for them last season.
They may not have enough money for both, unless Thome takes a contract similar to last season's, and with a clear drop-off after Francisco Liriano and Scott Baker, the Twins can not afford to let Pavano walk. They may want to act quickly, however, as the Nationals among other teams are pursuing Pavano.
New York Mets: Chris Young
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The Mets are clearly in need of starting pitching, and they will be looking for a low-cost, high-upside guy to fill in the rotation behind Johan Santana, Jon Niese, and Mike Pelfrey. They can't assume R.A. Dickey will be as good as he was, and at the very least, they will want to add another starter.
Chris Young and Jeff Francis both fall into that category, and the Mets have been linked to both of them, but Young seems to be the better option, and he has sparked a surprisingly low level of interest this off season and could come as a steal.
New York Yankees: Freddy Garcia
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All signs point to Andy Pettitte retiring, and the Yankees will will need to sign a starter to fill out the back end of their rotation or at least compete for a spot, as Sergio Mitre is currently penciled in as the fifth starter.
Garcia will be 36 this coming season, but he showed last season that he still has something left in the tank, as he went 12-6 last season after winning just five games over the previous three seasons. He is not a 200 inning, 17-win guy anymore, but in a Yankees rotation, he could easily win 15-games.
Oakland Athletics: Kyle Farnsworth
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The A's have been aggressive this offseason, picking up Josh Willingham, Hideki Matsui, and David DeJesus. They are also still in the running for the services of Adrian Beltre, although they are admittedly on the outside looking in.
With their improved offense, their biggest need may be adding one more arm at the back of the bullpen, and there are a number of options, but Farnsworth may be the most appealing of the group, as he is a proven arm, but won't cost the team a draft pick like someone like Grant Balfour would.
Philadelphia Phillies: Deal Joe Blanton
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The Phillies have perhaps the most set in stone roster of any in all of baseball, and they only thing they have left to do is unload Joe Blanton, who has become expendable after the team signed Cliff Lee.
Blanton is a solid starter, and the Phillies will look to restock their farm system with the trade, as none of the players they acquire will be looked at to contribute at the big league level in 2011.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Octavio Dotel
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The Pirates bullpen is as thin as it gets right now, and the team would certainly like to keep Joel Hanrahan and Evan Meek in a setup role if possible. They have been tied to guys like Brian Fuentes and Kevin Gregg, but they could look for a cheaper option to fill the closer's role.
Dotel served as the team's closer for the first half of last season before he was dealt, and he could again be headed for a role in the back of the Pirates bullpen in 2011.
San Diego Padres: Jeff Keppinger
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The Astros are looking to deal Keppinger after signing Bill Hall this offseason, and the Padres are short on infield depth across the boards. He is capable of playing second, short, and third, and he has starting experience should someone go down with an injury.
The Astros are simply looking to shed some payroll, and Keppinger should come fairly cheap to the Padres at the price of just a mid-level prospect more than likely.
San Francisco Giants: Felipe Lopez
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Lopez may no longer be a starting shortstop, or starter in general, but the loss of Juan Uribe leaves the Giants in need of a utility infielder, mainly one that can backup the shortstop and third base where they are particularly sparse.
Last season, Lopez as forced into extended action at third base when David Freese went down with an injury, and he suffered because of it. He could bounce back to his .300 average form if used correctly.
Seattle Mariners: Scott Hairston
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The Mariners are not short on holes, and there was a reason they were among the majors' worst team's last season. That said, their two most glaring holes are left field and third base, where their current starters are largely unproven.
Hairston would give the team a flexible option off the bench and someone who could potentially step in and start in left field if need be. He has decent power and should come at a fairly reasonable price as the Mariners wait around for the free agent market to thin out.
St. Louis Cardinals: Hank Blalock
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The Cardinals main focus is clearly on locking up Albert Pujols, and that will mean spending practically no more money until that is finished. That said, the team may still add another bat off the bench, perhaps in the form of a backup third baseman, an area of issue last year.
Blalock come at the cost of a minor league deal and a non-roster invite, but he still has potential contribute offensively, and he is just a couple years removed from some great seasons with the Rangers. Chad Tracy also fits the bill of low cost option at third base.
Tampa Bay Rays: Jim Thome
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Thome far exceeded expectations last season for the Twins, carrying the offense for stretches and stepping up huge when Justin Morneau went down with an injury. That unexpected season has made him one of the bigger question marks on the market this season.
All signs point to his production tailing off drastically at this point in his career, but after a good season,he won't be nearly as low-cost an option as last season. Still, the Rays are weak at first base and need a DH, and Thome looks to be the best option out there at this point. As long as they can keep it to a one year deal, this would be a good move for the Rays.
Texas Rangers: Adrian Beltre
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Beltre far exceeded expectations last season, and he has set himself up for one last big contract in his career, reportedly in the seven year, $90 million neighborhood. He seemed a lock to sign with the Angels, as did Carl Crawford, but now he seems on his way to the defending AL Champs.
His signing would more or less fill the offensive void left by Vladmir Guerrero should the team not bring him back. He would supplant Michael Young at third base, and Young would then become the team's DH/utility player in the mold of a Mark DeRosa.
Toronto Blue Jays: Will Ohman
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The Blue Jays had a terrific bullpen last season, but they will be sans Kevin Gregg and their top lefty setup man last season in Scott Downs, and they will undoubtedly be looking to fill out their bullpen before Spring Training hits.
Ohman is among the most used lefties in the league, averaging 62 appearances a year over the past six seasons, and while he does not have the closing experience of Downs, he would fill the void as the left handed setup man.
Washington Nationals: Adam LaRoche
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The Nationals came out of nowhere to sign one of the market's biggest names this offseason when they landed Jayson Werth, and they were also players in the Cliff Lee sweepstakes, although they eventually lost out to the Phillies.
They still have a hole at first base, as Adam Dunn departed in the offseason. With Derrek Lee and Carlos Pena now off the market, LaRoche is the most attractive option for the Nationals, and he could be in line for a multi-year deal if the Nationals choose to commit to the powerful lefty.
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