MLB Free Agents 2012: Every Team's Biggest Problem They Probably Won't Fix

Thus far during the offseason, many MLB teams have already addressed glaring needs through either signing free agents or in trade acquisitions. With several teams addressing multiple needs, not everything on each team’s wish list will be fulfilled.

Teams like the Miami Marlins and Los Angeles Angels have certainly taken care of several needs, with the two teams combining to spend over half a billion dollars in available free agents. Other teams have spent more wisely in covering specific needs.

At this point in the offseason, with just a handful of quality free agents left on the table, many teams will have to think creatively in order to fulfill their needs, and some of those needs simply won’t be met by the time spring training rolls around in less than two months.

Here is a list of each MLB team’s biggest lineup need that will most likely go unfulfilled.

Arizona Diamondbacks: Veteran Starting Pitcher

The Arizona Diamondbacks are loaded with a stable of young pitching prospects, and with their acquisition of Trevor Cahill from the Oakland A’s, the front-rotation trio of Ian Kennedy, Daniel Hudson and Cahill is certainly formidable.

However, the D-Backs would dearly love to find another veteran to round out the rotation as well, rather than rushing internal candidates such as Trevor Bauer and Tyler Skaggs. With their signing of Jason Kubel to a two-year contract and the dollars committed by GM Kevin Towers thus far, that wish for a veteran starter will likely go unfulfilled.

Atlanta Braves: Veteran Starting Shortstop

The Atlanta Braves have been relatively quiet this offseason thus far, ridding themselves of starting pitcher Derek Lowe and re-signing veteran Eric Hinske being the only significant moves made.

With veteran shortstop Alex Gonzalez gone to the Milwaukee Brewers, the Braves would love to find a temporary solution at shortstop to bridge the gap for prospect Tyler Pastornicky. However, there just aren’t a whole lot of options left at this point. Rumors have the Braves considering Ryan Theriot, however Theriot is shaky defensively and not a reliable everyday option. Other options, such as Ronny Cedeno and Jack Wilson, are just not anywhere near what the Braves need in terms of everyday production.

Pastornicky could very well be the man for the Braves come Opening Day.

Baltimore Orioles: Veteran Starting Pitcher

The Baltimore Orioles have been another team that have been rather inactive in the offseason, making several smaller moves with the signing of outfielder Endy Chavez and the acquisition of pitcher Dana Eveland from the Los Angeles Dodgers being the most significant moves thus far.

New VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette would no doubt love to upgrade a starting rotation that was woeful in 2011. While the purchase of Eveland adds depth, he spent much of the 2011 in the minors for the Dodgers.

Recent rumors have the O’s looking at former Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Joe Saunders, however to expect Saunders to become the staff ace is a tall task. Expect Duquette to ease slowly into his position without any major splashes at this point.

Boston Red Sox: Potent Right-Handed Bat

Boston Red Sox GM Ben Cherington significantly upgraded his bullpen with his acquisition of closer Andrew Bailey from the Oakland A’s, but in the process gave up young right fielder Josh Reddick, who showed flashes of brilliance last season for the Sox.

The Sox would love to find a solid right-handed bat to complement left-handed bats Adrian Gonzalez, David Ortiz, Jacoby Ellsbury and Carl Crawford. Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis will certainly contribute, but manager Bobby Valentine would dearly love to have another right-handed option for his lineup.

As it stands right now, Darnell McDonald and Ryan Sweeney are the only two internal options, and could provide platoon options for Valentine. Unless Cherington weaves some magic with a trade, that may be a need that will be unmet.

Chicago Cubs: Veteran Third Baseman

Fans of the Chicago Cubs certainly can’t be happy with the thought that prospect Josh Vitters could be the Cubs’ everyday third baseman come Opening Day.

With the departure of Aramis Ramirez, the Cubs have a huge gap to fill offensively. With a very thin free-agent market and the likelihood that new president of baseball operations Theo Epstein isn’t interested in David Wright, Cubs fans will likely see Vitters finally get his major league opportunity.

That’s some mighty big shoes to fill.

Chicago White Sox: Outfield Help

Chicago White Sox GM Kenny Williams has been quiet thus far in the postseason, other than the curious trade of closer Sergio Santos to the Toronto Blue Jays and the signing of starting pitcher John Danks to an extension.

After last year’s offseason that saw Williams significantly increase White Sox payroll with moves that yielded miserable results, no doubt he is a bit gun-shy this offseason. However, the Sox need outfield help. As it stands right now, the likely 2012 White Sox starting outfield would be Carlos Quentin in left, Alex Rios in right and promising prospect Dayan Viciedo in right. Counting on Rios to bounce back from a horrible 2011 campaign is iffy at best, and Quentin is still the subject of various trade rumors.

Cincinnati Reds: Veteran Bullpen Help

The Cincinnati Reds have made two moves to shore up their starting rotation, acquiring LHP Sean Marhsall from the Chicago Cubs and RHP Mat Latos from the San Diego Padres.

However, the bullpen appears to be a major question mark for the Reds heading into spring training. They are back in negotiations with closer Francisco Cordero, however at the setup and middle-relief positions, the picture is indeed muddy. Aroldis Chapman will likely be given an opportunity to crack the starting rotation, and Bill Bray and Sam LeCure are credible performers.

The Reds’ bullpen ERA of 3.55 was 11^th best in the majors, but with offseason flux, a veteran bullpen arm would certainly come in handy.

Cleveland Indians: Offensive First Baseman

The Cleveland Indians have certainly made a splash this offseason, acquiring RHP Derek Lowe from the Atlanta Braves, re-signing outfielder Grady Sizemore and signing free-agent second baseman Jose Lopez.

However, one glaring weakness has yet to be addressed for the Tribe—a run-producing first baseman.

While it’s extremely doubtful that Indians GM Chris Antonetti will make a play for Prince Fielder, Carlos Pena remains an option. Other than Fielder and Pena, offensive first basemen are in short supply.

Colorado Rockies: Top-of-the-Rotation Starter

Thus far this offseason, the Colorado Rockies have traded for pitchers Tyler Chatwood and Kevin Slowey. While they have added depth to their rotation, what they don’t have is an ace.

Adding Alex White and Drew Pomeranz with last year’s trade that sent Ubaldo Jimenez to the Cleveland Indians helped, but neither can be currently counted upon to step up as of yet. Incumbents Jhoulys Chacin, Juan Nicasio and Jason Hammels are all middle-rotation guys at best.

A collection of arms is great, but not if the collection doesn’t equal production.

Detroit Tigers: Productive Third Baseman

Last season, the Detroit Tigers went through a platoon at third base that included Brandon Inge, Don Kelly and Wilson Betemit, the combination of which provided a .222 average with just nine HRs and 54 RBI.

In today’s day and age, that is absolutely woeful from a corner-infield position.

GM Dave Dombrowski and manager Jim Leyland would certainly like to improve upon those numbers, however very few options are left available, save for a possible trade involving a certain New York Mets third baseman. Hmmm…

Houston Astros: Just About Everywhere

With a franchise-worst and league-worst 56 wins, the Houston Astros are clearly a team in need of just about everything they can find.

With the purging that occurred last season (Hunter Pence, Michael Bourn) and the team currently hampered with the large contracts of Carlos Lee, Brett Myers and Wandy Rodriguez, new owner Jim Crane looking to continue shedding payroll, don’t look for the Astros to be adding anything of significance.

Current commitments have the Astros payroll at somewhere around $55 million, which would represent their lowest payroll number since 2000. New GM Jeff Luhnow will likely look to build the team from within and continue building a farm system that was ranked 26^th by Baseball America.

Kansas City Royals: Starting Pitching

While the Kansas City Royals appeared to make a shrewd trade in obtaining San Francisco Giants starter Jonathan Sanchez in exchange for center fielder Melky Cabrera, the fact remains that the Royals still need a reliable starter.

Sanchez will essentially replace Jeff Francis in the rotation, which leaves a rotation of Sanchez, Luke Hochevar, Bruce Chen, Danny Duffy and Felipe Paulino.

While Duffy showed flashes of brilliance, and Chen turned into a reliable mid-rotation starter, Hochevar and Paulino are far from reliable. GM Drayton Moore hasn’t given an indication that the Royals are done dealing, but that rotation doesn’t exactly smack of top quality.

Los Angeles Angels: Everyday Third Baseman

The Los Angeles Angels have certainly stunned everyone this offseason with their acquisition of both Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson, however, they have also taken steps to upgrade elsewhere as well, acquiring catcher Chris Iannetta from the Colorado Rockies and signing reliever LaTroy Hawkins to shore up the bullpen.

One other area of need would be at third base. Alberto Callaspo and Maicer Izturis combined to hit 14 HRs and 67 RBI, which is competent but not at all productive for the corner position.

New GM Jerry DiPoto has certainly worked magic thus far, but it’s likely that all the cash is out of the bag, so to speak, with the investment of $331.5 million in both Pujols and Wilson.

Los Angeles Dodgers: Upgrade at Third Base

So far this offseason, the Los Angeles Dodgers have signed a lot of moving parts for their middle infield (Mark Ellis, Adam Kennedy, Jerry Hairston), a back-rotation starter (Chris Capuano), a mid-rotation starter (Aaron Harang) and two backup catchers (Josh Bard, Matt Treanor).

Signing Matt Kemp to a long-term extension was certainly helpful as well.

However, GM Ned Colletti is stuck with a major problem at third base. Juan Uribe, who was oft-injured and didn’t hit much of anything when he was healthy, is practically immovable because of the $16 million still owed to him, and with the Dodgers’ financial issues, they certainly can’t eat much of that money in a trade.

Sorry, Dodgers fans, you’re stuck with Uribe.

Miami Marlins: One More Reliable Starter

The Miami Marlins have certainly undergone an overhaul with the signings of Heath Bell, Jose Reyes and Mark Buehrle, and owner Jeffrey Loria may not be done yet.

While the three new players will certainly help, just one more dependable starter would be in order. The ace of the staff, Josh Johnson, has yet to show that he can counted upon to deliver over 30 starts, and while his stuff is indeed electric, his durability will continue to be a cause of concern.

A starting rotation that includes Johnson, Buehrle, Anibal Sanchez and Ricky Nolasco is certainly nothing to sneeze at, but if Johnson should somehow land on the DL again, the Marlins would have issues without the needed depth.

Loria could very well go after the likes of Javier Vazquez, Edwin Jackson or Hiroki Kuroda, but with the monies already invested, they may stay clear of what they perceive to be risks.

Milwaukee Brewers: Veteran Bullpen Help

The Milwaukee Brewers have arguably one of the best one-two punches in the back of the bullpen than any other team in baseball with Francisco Rodriguez and John Axford. However, this offseason the Brewers lost LaTroy Hawkins and Takashi Saito.

While the Brewers did sign Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Jose Veras, another veteran arm in front of K-Rod and Axford would certainly be nice. Considering the monies given out to Aramis Ramirez, Alex Gonzalez and the money they’ll likely have to pay in arbitration for K-Rod, GM Doug Melvin’s hands could be tied.

Minnesota Twins: Relief Help

The Minnesota Twins bullpen in 2011 was dead last in the American League in ERA, opponents’ batting average and K/BB ratio, and with the loss of closer Joe Nathan to boot.

Re-signing Matt Capps may help, but the Twins thus far have signed only bit pieces to help out (Phil Dumatrait, P.J. Walters, Jason Bulger). Without the presence of a solid setup man, the Twins bullpen could be doomed in 2012 as well.

New York Mets: Solid Outfield Help

The New York Mets took care of a purported need earlier in the offseason, shipping outfielder Angel Pagan off to the San Francisco Giants for Andres Torres. The Mets believe that Torres can bounce back to the numbers posted in 2010, when he hit 16 HRs with 68 RBI, rather than last year’s poor showing that included injuries.

However, at 34 years of age going into next year, to expect Torres to start in center field and produce the numbers of two seasons ago seems like a huge gamble. While GM Sandy Alderson is working on reducing payroll, the Mets would do well to seek additional outfield production should Torres’ 2011 campaign prove not to be a fluke.

New York Yankees: Veteran Starting Pitcher

With all of the hoopla surrounding the Miami Marlins and Los Angeles Angels’ spending sprees this offseason, the New York Yankees have been strangely quiet, with the exception of re-signing pitcher CC Sabathia and Freddy Sanchez.

The Yankees would still love to sign another quality veteran arm for the rotation, however, at this point in the offseason, GM Brian Cashman seems to be unimpressed with the arms left on the free-agent market (Roy Oswalt, Edwin Jackson, Hiroki Kuroda) or is just unwilling to overpay at this point.

Oakland Athletics: A New Stadium

The Oakland Athletics have already unloaded Gio Gonzalez, Trevor Cahill, Craig Breslow and Andrew Bailey, made no significant offer to their best hitter of 2011, Josh Willingham, and appear resigned to be in rebuild once again.

A’s fans can see this activity happening in the future as well, as long as the A’s remain in Oakland and especially at O.co Coliseum. Without a move to San Jose and a state-of-the-art stadium, GM Billy Beane’s more-than-capable hands are completely tied.

Philadelphia Phillies: Upgrade at Third Base

The Philadelphia Phillies have been active this offseason, and one of the moves they made was to address issues at third base, acquiring Ty Wigginton via trade with the Colorado Rockies.

Incumbent third baseman Placido Polanco has had issues staying healthy for the last two years, and at 36 years of age it’s likely that trend could continue. However, Wigginton is only two years younger, and with a .242 average and 15 HRs isn’t really all that much of an upgrade at all.

Pittsburgh Pirates: Find a First Baseman

Pittsburgh Pirates GM Neal Huntington has done an outstanding job this offseason plugging holes in his roster, acquiring catcher Rod Barajas, shortstop Clint Barmes, trading for third baseman Casey McGehee, pitcher Erik Bedard and adding outfield depth with outfielder Nate McLouth.

However, the Pirates still have a glaring need at first base, and while the Pirates could still be in play for Derrek Lee, Huntington has also indicated that the team could fulfill that need with internal options as well.

"First base might not even be an option for us," Huntington told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "We’ve got some versatility with some guys who can move around, do some different things."

San Diego Padres: Upgrade Middle Infield

The San Diego Padres currently have a middle infield tandem of Orlando Hudson and Jason Bartlett, and both are signed through the 2012. Both of them also clearly underperformed in the 2011.

With averages hovering in the low .240s, neither Hudson nor Bartlett inspire confidence in the Padres lineup. However, GM Josh Byrnes is likely stuck with both of them, barring some unforeseen miracle of a trade.

San Francisco Giants: Outfield Help

Having lost out on the Carlos Beltran sweepstakes and unloading Andres Torres to the New York Mets, the San Francisco Giants enter the 2012 season with much uncertainty in their outfield.

Pagan’s potential was never realized in New York, and the Giants are hoping that a change of scenery is the best medicine. The acquisition of Melky Cabrera certainly helps, but with a rag-tag group that includes Pagan, Nate Schierholtz, Aubrey Huff and Brandon Belt, manager Bruce Bochy has all but assured that there will be an open competition for all three outfield positions in spring training.

"I don't want to lock anything up right now," Bochy told MLB.com, essentially saying he isn’t confident about the options presented to him.

Seattle Mariners: Dumping Chone Figgins

The Seattle Mariners entered the offseason with several needs, and for GM Jack Zduriencik, one of the biggest may be the most impossible—dumping the massively disappointing Chone Figgins.

Figgins, signed by the Mariners to a four-year, $36 million contract before the 2010 season, has been hopelessly abysmal during his two-year stint in Seattle. Oft-injured last season, Figgins appeared in just half of his team’s games, hitting a woeful .188.

If Figgins could somehow morph back into the spark-plug-type of player he was with the Los Angeles Angels in the mid- to late 2000s, that would certainly solve a lot of the Mariners’ problems offensively. However given the recent track record, that’s not likely.

Zduriencik would be the toast of Seattle if he could find a willing sucker…er…partner to rid the Mariners of an obvious mistake.

St. Louis Cardinals: Second Base

In signing Carlos Beltran to a two-year contract, the Cardinals worked to replace at least some of the offense left behind by the departure of Albert Pujols, with Beltran slated for right field and Lance Berkman sliding into first, so to speak.

However, second base is still an issue for the Cardinals. Yes, they retained Skip Schumaker with a two-year deal, but it’s likely Schumaker will resume the utility role he has played over the past two seasons.

Daniel Descalso and Tyler Greene will likely be in the mix as well, however manager Mike Matheny would love to go into his first spring training knowing he has a reliable option other than a platoon that has been in place at second for the Cards for the past couple of seasons.

Tampa Bay Rays: A Shortstop That Can Produce

The Tampa Bay Rays have made very few moves this offseason thus far, and GM Andrew Friedman always loathes to reveal much of anything in terms of possible offseason moves.

However, one glaring need is production at the shortstop position. Friedman has given no indication that he will change from the platoon of Reid Brignac, Elliot Johnson and Sean Rodriguez, who combined to hit a league-worst .193 at the position, however did provide steady defense, a trait that Tampa Bay covets.

Texas Rangers: Upgrade at First Base

The Texas Rangers have few weaknesses offensively, and the only significant move they’ve made this offseason is the signing of closer Joe Nathan.

However, first base would be a position that the Rangers would love to see more production from. Mitch Moreland is capable, but not a long-term answer, and Michael Young is much more suited to the DH position, as shown with some of his play there this past postseason. Mike Napoli has certainly shown that he can handle full-time catching duties, although can play first in a pinch.

With three hits in 29 at-bats during the postseason, Moreland needs to show that he can hit in any situation, and given his second-half and postseason numbers, there’s not much hope that Moreland can be the man.

Toronto Blue Jays: Find Reliable Bullpen Help

The Toronto Blue Jays posted a league-worst 25 blown saves in the 2011 season, and relievers Jon Rauch and Frank Francisco have already left via free agency.

The Blue Jays did pull off one nice move, acquiring Chicago White Sox closer Sergio Santos for 22-year-old prospect Nestor Molina. Casey Janssen could settle in as the primary setup man, however beyond that, the Jays will be relying on Jesse Litsch and Carlos Villanueva. GM Alex Anthopoulos is still searching for options, however it could be youngsters Joel Carreno, Chad Beck and left-hander Luis Perez that Blue Jays fans will be seeing in the 2012 bullpen.

Washington Nationals: Everyday Center Fielder

The Washington Nationals are clearly a team on the upswing, and with the acquisition of Gio Gonzalez via trade from the Oakland A’s, will have a pitching staff that will be among the best in the National League.

The Nats also feature some up-and-comers in their lineup as well, with Wilson Ramos, Danny Espinosa, Ian Desmond and stalwarts Ryan Zimmerman, Mike Morse and Jayson Werth. Adam LaRoche should be healthy and contributing next season as well.

The big question remains in center field. Roger Bernadina is clearly not the answer, and while Rick Ankiel at times can provide power and solid defense, doesn’t appear to be an everyday option.

With the Tampa Bay Rays unlikely to deal B.J. Upton, and ditto with the Minnesota Twins and Denard Span, GM Mike Rizzo may turn his sights on Cuban outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. However, Cespedes is still an unproven commodity in the majors, so Nats fans may have to suffer with a platoon of Bernadina and Ankiel, assuming Ankiel re-signs.

Doug Mead is a featured columnist with Bleacher Report. His work has been featured on the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, SF Gate, CBS Sports, the Los Angeles Times and the Houston Chronicle. Follow Doug on Twitter, @Sports_A_Holic.