Free Agency

With the 2010 regular season behind us, and all the normal MLB trade rumors completed, why not take the opportunity to discuss who will be headlining the Trade Rumor department in 2011?

The free agency market next year is rather large, and there are a number of players that could be mentioned here, so I will simply take a look at who I believe will be some big names taking center stage.

I’ll try to look at each position, and throw in a wildcard player that could be the next diamond in the rough.

Times are tough in Cleveland, Ohio nowadays. The local economy, seemingly on the rebound everywhere else, continues to stagnate near the bottom of the national conscience. 

It is the middle of October, and the Indians are left at home watching playoff baseball for the third straight season. The Browns, with their third string rookie quarterback, lost to the Steelers, again—only by 18 points this time.  

The New York Yankees have advanced to the ALCS this year and made themselves known as a team that can win year in and year out. The Yankees could wrap up the season with another World Series win or a loss to whomever they have to play in the ALCS.

Either way, the Yankees already have the reputation of going hard in the offseason for some of the top of the line players on the market. This year the focus may be on pitching. That is where Cliff Lee's name comes in. But here is a scenario; What if the Yankees wiff on Lee?

Here are the next best 

Three things are a given in this offseason. First, Omar Vizquel will be a free agent and has only a year or two left in the tank. Second, the Indians need a third baseman for one year, and badly. Third, career-shortstop Vizquel spent last year at third base for the Chicago White Sox and wasn't too bad there.

So, wouldn't it make sense to bring back one of Cleveland's finest from the glory years of the '90s?

While the playoffs are now on the front burner, in the back of every baseball fan's mind, or the front if your team has been eliminated from contention, is what moves the team will make this offseason.

Free agency is always a hot bed for debate, and every year there will be a fair share of diamonds in the rough as well as big time busts. Often times, contracts are a sign of the free agent class as a whole and not necessarily what the player is worth. Once the top tier guys start to get signed, teams that missed out often overpay for second tier guys, and so on.

The Padres have quite a bit on their minds right now as they are making a playoff push into the postseason. But it seems like Adrian Gonzalez wants to bring more attention to the team as he announces that he wouldn't mind listening to what the Cubs have to offer when he becomes a free agent after 2011. 

Let me begin by saying that I am a fan of Ben Zobrist. He is a switch-hitter who can play a multitude of positions and he has a great attitude. Overall, Zobrist is a solid baseball player and a great person. However, that does not mean the Rays should have given him a three-year contract extension worth up to $30 million.

The Texas Rangers have signed yet another hard throwing arm for their pitching staff. Well, at least when he was first called up he had great start to his career with that arm before it fell apart. Mark Prior has reportedly signed a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers, according to Fort Worth Star Telegram's Jeff Wilson. 

He states that the deal will not just run through 2010, but could be intact for the long-term on his Twitter page. 

Third baseman Hank Blalock has signed a minor league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays worth $925,000, plus an extra $400,000 in incentives, reports Jon Heyman .

Blalock's contract is worth approximately $6 million less than what he was earning with the Texas Rangers last season. 

After an off-season full of speculation surrounding infielder Felipe Lopez signing with the St. Louis Cardinals, the deal finally became official on Friday.

The club agreed with Lopez on a one-year, $2 million contract with incentives on Friday, despite recent reports that the Cardinals weren’t looking to add another infielder before Spring Training.