BD Hot Stove: Who’s On First?

Written by: Drew Sarver on 26th November 2010

BD Hot Stove: Who's On First? | read this item

Last week the hot stove took a look at the top free agents available over at the hot corner. To wrap up the week, the hot stove makes the long throw across the diamond to see who is available at 1st base.

The off-season began with 25 free agents at 1st base (though some are really utility men)- that number has now been reduced to 24 with Aubrey Huff re-upping for two years in San Francisco. But that still leaves the best free agent 1st basemen on the open market.

Paul Konerko: At age 34, the White Sox corner man had a tremendous offensive season. 39 home runs, 111 RBI, 72 walks, and a career high .977 OPS. Konerko’s season is the type that makes fans question a player’s desire in a contract year compared to an “in-contract” season. Konerko averaged just 25 home runs and 75 RBI the previous two seasons and posted OPS’s of .783 and .842. In fairness, Konerko played in just 122 games in 2008 due to injury, but his numbers were pedestrian at best.

That being said, Konerko’s bat is still a difference maker and his services are in demand. The White Sox would love to have him back, but are unsure they can afford him. The Red Sox and Rangers are rumored to be ready to make a strong push and Jon Heyman of SI feels that the Orioles could be in the mix as well. Jon Morosi of Fox has heard Konerko will sign with the White Sox or Diamondbacks. Though other than money, we can see now reason to sign with AZ.

Adam Dunn: The big 1st baseman is a walking, whiffing, home run machine. Dunn’s normal season is 40 home runs, 100 RBI, 100 walks, 160+ strikeouts. Fans, pundits, media tend to accentuate Dunn’s strikeouts too much, and tend to overlook his .902 career OPS.

The Nationals would love to re-sign Dunn and offered him arbitration, but they couldn’t prevent him from establishing free agency after negotiating during this past season. He’s reportedly seeking a deal worth at least three years, $40M. Dunn doesn’t want to DH, but he’d better suited for the AL since he’s a butcher at 1st base. The Orioles would be a good fit- you could see Dunn hitting one bomb after another on to Eutaw St.

Dunn has been a NL player his whole career and may prefer to stay where he knows. If that’s the case, the Cubs would certainly welcome him.

Carlos Pena: The Rays 1st baseman was not offered arbitration by the team so it looks like Pena’s four year stint in Tampa is over. Pena exploded on the Southwestern Florida scene in 2007, when he belted 46 home runs and drove in 121 runs. He topped 30 homers and 100 RBI the next two seasons, but his OPS and batting average dipped and strikeouts took a 15% increase. In the final year of his contract, he had the worst full season of his career. A .196 batting average, 158 strikouts, and a .732 OPS. Not the kind of season you want going into free agency. But there are teams interested.

The Cubs reportedly are chief among them. Chicago dealt struggling and fellow free agent Derrek Lee last August after nearly seven full seasons as their 1st baseman. The Nats are also highly interested in Pena after not being able to re-sign Adam Dunn before he reached free agency. The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo, on the other hand, feels Pena may opt for a one year deal to have a better shot at free agency following the 2011 season. That scenario would bode well for the Rays if they wanted to bring Pena back at a cheaper rate.

Derrek Lee: Which Lee, now 35, will a team sign? The player who put up pedestrian numbers three of the last four years, including this past season, or the one who had a monster 2009 (35 HR, 111 RBI, .972 OPS). More likely it’s the former, though he did play the last season with a torn ligament in his thumb. There’s a good chance Lee won’t find a landing spot until the above three players find a home.

Among the remaining 1st baseman out there: Nick Johnson (don’t go there), Jorge Cantu, Jason Giambi (can’t handle full time any more), Troy Glaus, Adam LaRoche, Mike Lowell (retiring), Lyle Overbay, and Mike Sweeney.

Rumors, News, and Transactions

Bill Madden of the NY Daily News is reporting that Derek Jeter is looking for a six year contract worth $150M. Perhaps this is just a ploy by Jeter’s camp to find a halfway point, because it’s clearly an unrealistic demand.

Jayson Stark of ESPN says the Red Sox are the favorite to sign Jayson Werth. The hot stove has said before we can see Werth peppering Fenway Park with lasers.

Tsuyoshi Nishioka is done with Japan’s posting system. The Chiba Lotte Marines have accepted a big on the shortstop, though it will be a bit before the “winning” team is announced. The Twins are rumored to be that team.

After seven seasons in the U.S. Kaz Matsui has returned to Japan, signing a deal with the Rakuten Eagles.

Rinku Singh was released by the Pirates organization after failing to progress enough after being the winner of an Indian reality show for a shot in the bigs.

Update 7 p.m.

Derek Jeter’s agent Casey Close has responded to earlier reports that the Yankees’ captain wants a six year, $150M contract. “The recently rumored terms of our contract proposal are simply inaccurate.”

Jon Garland has reportedly received a one year, $5M contract from the Los Angeles Dodgers. The deal includes an option for 2012. (Be sure to check out the BD Fantasy take on Garland’s signing.)

Even though the Twins won the bidding on Japanese shortstop Tsuyoshi Nishioka, Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that the Twins are determined to tender current a contract for shortstop J.J. Hardy, who would then most likely be traded.

Apparently Victor Martinez doesn’t mind being a full-time DH. The good bat/bad glove catcher will be the primary DH for the Tigers next season. That info was confirmed by general manager Dave Dombrowski. Alex Avila will remain the team’s primary catcher.

The Rangers are reportedly working on a deal that would bring Zack Greinke from the Royals.

Update 10 p.m.

From the Rumor Mill

He said, she said. Earlier it was reported by Bill Madden of the NY Daily News that Derek Jeter was seeking a six year, $150M deal. Later Jeter’s agent Casey Close basically called the report ridiculous. Tonight word comes from the NY Times’ Michael Schmidt that Jeter is seeking a four year deal worth $23M-$24M a year.

Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times expects Dave Aardsma to be dealt with the prospect of the closer making $4M-$5M in arbitration.

The Denver Post’s Troy Rench expects the Rockies to start making a stronger push for free agent pitcher Carl Pavano.

Drew Sarver is the Yankees content editor and a contributor for BaseballDigest.com. You can also read his work at his blog, My Pinstripes. He can be contacted at mypinstripes@gmail.com and can be followed on Twitter at @BD_Sarver and @MyPinstripes.

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Topics: adam dunn, Arbitration, Aubrey Huff, Baseman, Butcher, Career Ops, Carlos Pena, Corner Man, derrek lee, Fairness, Florida Scene, Free Agent, Free Agents, Homers, Hot Corner, Hot Stove, Jon Heyman, Morosi, Nationals, Nl Player, Ops, Orioles, Paul Konerko, Pundits, Red Sox, Stint, Two Seasons, White Sox