2015 MLB Free Agents: Latest Rumors and Predictions on Underrated Options

MLB teams will toss around hordes of money this offseason, as many organizations willfully attempt to spend their way back into the championship picture.

Not every market, however, can afford a nine-figure player, which prompts them to think outside the box.

All general managers lust for a galvanizing ace, so expect a feeding frenzy to unfold for Max Scherzer and Jon Lester.

Despite their elderly age and defensive limitations, Nelson Cruz and Victor Martinez will also get paid. After all, everyone still digs the long ball.

But front offices are getting more creative and are forward-thinking with their team construction. Players can derive value in different ways, whether it's power, speed, defense, durability or even pitch-framing. 

Rather than discussing the top draws, let's instead examine a 31-year-old catcher with limited traditional power, a 39-year-old relief pitcher who lost his ninth-inning role and an outfielder from Cuba.

Pirates Planning Qualifying Offer for Russell Martin

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Russell Martin presents a fascinating case study in player evaluation. On one hand, he was one of baseball's most underrated players during the 2014 season. Gambling on those results repeating for a few more years, however, is a risky endeavor.

The Pittsburgh Pirates hope to block that test by presenting the catcher with the one-year qualifying offer, according to CBS Sports' Jon Heyman:

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The Pirates plan to extend the $15.3 million qualifying offer to star free-agent catcher Russell Martin, league sources said.

The Pirates made a multi-year offer to Martin sometime during the season, as was reported here, and are apparently serious in their efforts to retain Martin. The qualifying offer itself would represent quite a raise for Martin, although a huge season has set him up to prosper in free agency.

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As noted by Heyman, this was no given considering the cost-conscious Pirates balked on extending A.J. Burnett a qualifier after notching a 3.30 ERA and 209 strikeouts the previous year. 

Had Martin embarked on the open market with the same stat line 15 years ago, nobody would have dreamed of awarding him top dollar. A guy with 11 home runs and 67 RBI simply didn't get paid back then.

Now we're all much smarter. We see his resounding .402 on-base percentage fueled by an incredible 12.8 percent walk rate. We understand that only Jonathan Lucroy and Buster Posey recorded higher WARs at the catcher position, with only Posey and Devin Mesoraco generating a greater Weighted Runs Created Plus (wRC+).

Category	Number	Rank (C w/ 300+ PA)
AVG	.290	3rd
OBP	.402	1st
SLG	.430	7th
BB%	12.8	3rd
wRC+	140	3rd
WAR	5.3	3rd

Yet Martin benefited from a career-high .336 Batting Average on Balls in Play (BABIP), meaning his .290 average will deteriorate closer to his .259 career clip.

He certainly won't be as good as last year, but that shouldn't send squads running, as FanGraphs estimated his 2014 worth at $28.9 million, well above any realistic price tag.

Even if he can't find a free-agent offer with a significantly higher base than the qualifying offer, Martin's elite plate discipline and defense are enough to support him receiving a lucrative multiyear deal, one the Pirates likely aren't willing to dole out.

Prediction: Martin rejects qualifying offer, signs three-year deal elsewhere

Koji Uehara and Red Sox "Aren't Close" to Extension

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Back as early as July, Koji Uehara was poised to cash in on a demonstrative deal as one of baseball's best closers.

Then a weird thing happened. After allowing 10 earned runs over the first four months, he unraveled and surrendered 10 more in the final two. The once-untouchable reliever suddenly couldn't buy an out.

With Uehara turning 40 right around next year's Opening Day, where does that leave his standing with the Boston Red Sox, who stripped him of the closing gig he seized in 2013?

According to The Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo, the two sides remain far apart on getting anything done:

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There have been preliminary talks with Uehara about staying in Boston but the sides aren’t close to a deal. The Sox probably don’t want to extend a qualifying offer of $15.3 million, but a negotiated deal that might include an option would be preferable. Uehara, even at age 40 next season, will get some notice despite his struggles late in the year.

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Timing has cost the Japanese star some considerable dough, as he submitted a 1.09 ERA and 11.22 strikeout-to-walk ratio during an inspiring 2013 campaign.

One would look to the veteran losing his command or ability to miss bats in 2014, but that wasn't the case. He filed 10 punchouts for every walk, ranking second behind Sean Doolittle.

In fact, nobody is close to matching his K/BB rate since joining the majors in 2009. 

Rank	Player	K/BB Ratio
1	Koji Uehara	10.71
2	Sean Doolittle	6.53
3	Mariano Rivera	5.69
4	Sergio Romo	5.64
5	Junichi Tazawa	5.22

For those who like strikeouts-minus-walks percentages better, Uehara still fares among the league's most dominant relievers in a more representative group of MLB's current batch of shutdown fireballers.

Rank	Player	K-BB%
1	Craig Kimbrel	32.7
2	Koji Uehara	31.1
3	Aroldis Chapman	31.0
4	Kenley Jansen	30.6
5	Greg Holland	25.5
6	Sean Doolittle	25.5

Viewed as interchangeable while stamping too small of a sample size, relievers rarely get long-term deals, especially not ones about to turn 40.

With that said, Boston needs to address its pitching if it's going to successfully press the reset button on 2015, and the club can now ink Uehara to a short-term deal without breaking the bank.

Prediction: Red Sox re-sign Uehara for one year, $7-8 million

Phillies Emerge as "Strong Contenders" for Yasmany Tomas

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MLB players are riddled with enough uncertainty to befuddle teams, so gauging foreign talent becomes an even trickier chore, but one that has paid massive dividends for willing participants.

Yasiel Puig and Jose Abreu instantly towered above expectations, massively outperforming their sizable contracts to devolve into two of baseball's biggest bargains.

Realizing what's at stake, teams are beginning to expand their salary thresholds, as evidenced by the Red Sox giving Rusney Castillo a seven-year, $72.5 million deal in August.

Yasmany Tomas is the next big-time international player to emerge. Baseball America's Ben Badler delivered his scouting report on the 23-year-old slugger:

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A righthanded-hitting corner outfielder, Tomas can hit towering home runs thanks to the strength from his thickly-built 6-foot-1, 230-pound frame. Tomas has 70 raw power on the 20-80 scale, and with Jose Abreu already gone, the only player still in Cuba with more raw power than him was Alfredo Despaigne. He has some experience in center field and is a decent runner for his size, but his speed is still below-average and he’s going to be a corner outfielder in pro ball.

Tomas was one of the youngest players on the Cuban national team at the 2013 World Baseball Classic, although he had an up-and-down season for his Industriales team this past season. Given his present talent level, Tomas might have a chance to go straight into a major league lineup, but a more likely scenario would have him starting in the upper minors, with Triple-A seeming like a good fit.

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The allure of a young power bat will tempt many clubs this offseason. According to the New York Daily News' Andy Martino, plenty of teams are expressing interest in the young power hitter:

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Tomas has been linked to - with varying degrees of seriousness - the Dodgers, Padres, Phillies, Twins, Rangers, Giants and Tigers.

To that, we can add this: People involved in the process now identify the Phillies as strong contenders for Tomas, and the Padres and Dodgers as far less likely. “And don’t count out the Tigers,” one source said.

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Martino also indicated that neither the New York Yankees nor the New York Mets are likely to factor into the Tomas sweepstakes. The Bronx Bombers are tied up to too many hefty contracts, and the Mets don't appear willing to pony up for a player who fits their need.

The Phillies, however, are also a questionable fit, as they owe Ryan Howard, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Chase Utley and Jonathan Papelbon a combined $96.5 million next season, per Cot's Baseball Contracts.

To make room for Tomas, they'd need to either move Marlon Byrd or give up on Domonic Brown.

Out in Texas, the Rangers can buy out Alex Rios for $1 million, allowing them to spend the $12.5 million allotted to him last year.

Although they finished with the American League's worst record (67-95) last season, they suffered a litany of injuries. Tomas joining forces with Adrian Beltre, Prince Fielder and Shin-Soo Choo would once again give Texas a potent lineup.

Prediction: Tomas signs with Rangers