Major League Baseball free agency has been underway for a few days, but don't expect the activity to ramp up until after qualifying offers are accepted or rejected on Friday. Until then, we're running through all the positions and taking a look at the available options.
More MLB Offseason: Top 50 Free Agents | Top 10 C | Top 10 RP | Top 20 SP | Top 10 OF | Trade Tracker
We'll lump in designated hitters with first basemen and it's still a very thin position.
NOTE: Byung Ho Park isn't a free agent since only the Twins can negotiate with him. If ranked, though, he'd be second here behind Davis.
1. Chris Davis
After an off-year in 2014 -- which included a suspension for amphetamines -- Davis struggled early in 2015, hitting .208 with eight homers through May 26. The rest of the way, however, Davis was one of baseball's best sluggers. He hit .281/.386/.611 with 39 home runs and 94 RBI in those remaining 118 games.
We're left with a three-year line that looks really weird.
2013: .286/.370/.634, 42 2B, 53 HR, 138 RBI
2014: .196/.300/.404, 16 2B, 26 HR, 72 RBI
2015: .262/.361/.562, 31 2B, 47 HR, 117 RBI
He'll be 30 next season and we can expect that he'll continue to get a therapeutic-use exemption for his ADHD medication (which he didn't have in 2014, leading to his suspension) moving forward.
Though Davis is far from a sure thing and has his shortcomings, his immense power upside teamed with the lack of competition here means he's gonna get paid in a big way this offseason.
2. Mike Napoli
Napoli got off to a terrible start for the Red Sox last season, but he started to resemble his old self down the stretch, especially once he re-joined the Rangers. In the second half, he hit .283/.381/.522 with nine doubles and eight home runs. Still, he hit just .224/.324/.410 (96 OPS+) on the season and has just turned 34. Reports indicate he might return to catching every once in a while, which would give his stock a boost.
The four-time All-Star and former MVP will be 35 next season and the worry is that he just can't stay on the field any more. Concussion issues derailed his Twins career and last season he managed to play just 49 games for Colorado. Even in 2014, when Morneau won the NL batting title, he played in 135 games.
Morneau can still hit if he can play. In 2014, his numbers weren't just a Coors Field creation. He hit .309/.364/.475 on the road. The problem is his history (dizziness played a major role in his lack of playing time this past season). The team that signs him will be getting a player who can produce but might only appear in 1/3 of the season.
The former second baseman played everywhere but the battery and center field last season. He hit .265/.314/.435 (108 OPS+) with 14 home runs in part-time duty, too, so he's a useful piece if deployed properly.
5. Steve Pearce
Too bad Pearce wasn't a free agent last offseason. He was coming off a year in which he hit 21 homers with a .293/.373/.556 (157 OPS+) line. This past season it dipped to .218/.289/.422. He still showed power, with 15 home runs in 294 at-bats, but given the career as a whole, 2014 was an obvious anomaly. He'll be 33 next season, too.
6. John Jaso
A low-power, high-OBP guy, Jaso doesn't fit the profile most teams have for a DH-type, but he can be a very helpful member of a lineup. In 216 plate appearances last season, Jaso hit .286 with a .380 on-base percentage while only striking out 39 times. The lefty is a career .178 hitter against southpaws, so he needs to be platooned. If used correctly, though, he'll prove a bargain.
Even the home run power started to evaporate in 2015 for Reynolds, long a notorious high-strikeout, big-power, low-average guy. He maintained the high strikeouts (121 in 382 at-bats) and low average (.230), but hit only 13 home runs. He's 32, so there could be another 25-plus home run season in him, though he hasn't done that since 2011.
8. Kyle Blanks
Yes, we're scraping the bottom of the barrel already. Blanks played just 18 games in both Triple-A and the majors last season, as he continues to have issues staying healthy. He did hit well in his short time with the Rangers (.313/.352/.522 with five doubles and three homers in 71 plate appearances).
The most notable thing he did last season was make a fool of himself in the Wild Card. Overall, he hit .246 with a .642 OPS, 12 doubles and four home runs in 240 plate appearances. He's versatile but has never posted an OPS+ of better than 97.
10. Corey Hart
Hart will be 34 next season and has only played in 103 games since 2012 thanks to a major knee injury. There's always the hope that he returns to form (he hit .270 with 35 doubles and 30 home runs in 2012), but he's hit just .206/.266/.325 since coming back from the injury.
The rest: Jeff Baker, Travis Ishikawa, Garrett Jones, Chris Parmelee
