Call to the pen
Fansided

The MLB free agency All-Star team

By Bill Felber

HOUSTON, TX - OCTOBER 16: Dallas Keuchel #60 of the Houston Astros looks on during Game 3 of the ALCS against the Boston Red Sox at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday, October 16, 2018 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Loren Elliott/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX - OCTOBER 16: Dallas Keuchel #60 of the Houston Astros looks on during Game 3 of the ALCS against the Boston Red Sox at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday, October 16, 2018 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Loren Elliott/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /
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MLB free agency
LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 28: World Series MVP Steve Peearce #25 of the Boston Red Sox holds up the Willie Mayys World Series Most Valuable Player trophy after the Red Sox defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 5 of the 2018 World Series between the Boston Red Sox and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on Sunday, October 28, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Alex Trautwig/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /

First Base

Top to bottom, this is the weakest free agent position. Teams seeking an upgrade there, though, will have the option of setting their sights on the reigning World Series MVP.

Steve Pearce earned that distinction at, for him, the most financially propitious moment. Following a perfectly acceptable season at the plate – a .284 combined batting average for the Blue Jays and Red Sox – his four World Series hits included three home runs with 8 RBIs. That translated to a 1.167 slugging average, a 1.667 OPS, and the hardware.

Pearce is coming off a contract that paid him $6.25 million, so he’s likely to remain financially attractive. Here’s a comparison of the 2018 salaries and WAR of all AL first basemen getting at least 250 plate appearances:

Name, bWAR, Salary
Steve Pearce, 1.5, $6.25M
Greg Bird, -0.6, $582K
Jake Bauers, 0.6, $548K
Justin Smoak, 2.3, $4.125M
Chris Davis, -2.8, $23M
Jose Abreu, 1.7, $13M
Yonder Alonso, 1.6, $7M
Joe Mauer, 1.2, $23M
John Hicks, 0.2, $551K
Lucas Duda, 0.3, $3.5M
Yuli Gurriel, 2.2, $12.4M
Matt Olson, 4.3, $548K
Ryon Healy, -0.6, $550K*
Albert Pujols, 0.5, $27M
Ronald Guzman, 0.7, $550K*
*Estimated

While it’s theoretically possible to stumble into a Matt Olson – a big production, low salary guy – Pearce returns solid value. He had the sixth best production as measured by WAR in exchange for slightly less than the $8.15 positional salary average.

Pearce isn’t likely to be a transformative piece, but he’ll be a solid contributor.

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