Each MLB team's most important free agent

With apologies to center fielder A.J. Pollock, Corbin is looking like the most valuable free agent in a weak pitching market. He had a career year in 2018 with the development of his slider, posting a 3.15 ERA and 246 strikeouts in 200 innings over 33 starts.

Markakis came up big in his walk year, hitting .297-14-93 with an .806 OPS. He made his first All-Star appearance at age 34 and has certainly earned himself another significant contract.

Jones refused a trade at the deadline, but he might not have a choice but to move on from Baltimore after spending his entire career there to this point. The five-time All-Star is coming off his worst season since 2008, hitting just .281-15-63 for a historically bad team.

With all due respect to Nathan Eovaldi, Kimbrel will probably get a bigger per-year contract in free agency as one of the league's elite closers. He finished 2018 with 42 saves and a 2.74 ERA, fanning 13.9 batters per nine innings.

Murphy came back from knee surgery to have another great offensive season between Washington and Chicago. He hit .299-12-42 in 91 games, and the Cubs are likely to look at ways to bring him back.

Shields looked like his career was drawing to a close before last season, but he showed that he had something left last year by dropping his arm angle. Despite 16 losses, Shields had a viable 4.53 ERA and threw more than 200 innings for the 10th time in his career.

Harvey's arm hasn't been the same after several injuries in New York, most notably thoracic outlet syndrome, but he started to show some of his old form after getting traded to Cincy. He finished with a 4.50 ERA in 24 starts for the Reds, and a team looking for upside will likely take a chance.

Cleveland has several key free agents, including Donaldson, Michael Brantley, Cody Allen and Andrew Miller. Donaldson is coming off a disappointing year due to a recurring calf injury, but the former AL MVP is just one year removed from hitting 33 home runs. In a thin infield market, he should still get a significant contract.

The Rox are set to possibly lose DJ LeMahieu, Carlos Gonzalez and Gerardo Parra, but it's Ottavino who could get the biggest contract after a brilliant 2018 season. He finished with a 2.43 ERA and 112 strikeouts over 77.2 innings for Colorado and very well could be handed a closer job elsewhere. The Rockies have replacements ready for all of their free agents, but Ottavino's loss would hurt the most.

The Tigers don't have much of note hitting the free agent market, but Iglesias should earn a significant contract because of his defense. The longtime Detroit shortstop missed time last year due to injury, but he has performed as one of the better defensive shortstops in the league over the last four seasons.

Keuchel is among several significant Houston free agents, along with Charlie Morton, Evan Gattis, Marwin Gonzalez and Brian McCann. The former Cy Young winner reached 200 innings for the first time since 2015, posting a 3.74 ERA.

The Royals cleared out most of their pending free agents at the trade deadline. There probably won't be much of a market for Escobar, who signed for just $2.5 million last season and posted a career-worst .593 OPS.

Richards is hitting free agency at the worst possible time, following Tommy John surgery. He's unlikely to contribute much in 2019 and has managed to make only 28 starts over the last three seasons. However, he's pitched like an ace when he has been on the mound since 2014, so teams will probably line up for him.

Machado has almost certainly played his last game in Dodger blue with Corey Seager set to return from Tommy John surgery. He's hit 33-plus home runs in four straight seasons, and the only real question is whether Machado or Bryce Harper will get a bigger contract this offseason.

The Marlins were a team of mostly prospects last year after yet another fire sale, so Shuck might be the only free agent that draws real interest. He struggled last season in 142 plate appearances.

Moustakas waited too long to sign last offseason and had to settle for a one-year deal with Kansas City. He's unlikely to make the same mistake twice and should find some interest after hitting 28 home runs last year. Milwaukee also features Gio Gonzalez, Joakim Soria and Wade Miley among their free agents.

Most of Minnesota's free agents are coming off of subpar years, including Santana, Logan Morrison and Logan Forsythe. Santana was never able to get fully healthy and is certainly a risk heading into his age 36 season. However, he had a 3.28 ERA over 211.1 innings in 2017, so he will surely have a market.

If Mets fans have any reason for optimism, it's that their core is returning next season. Their only major free agents are Jackson, A.J. Ramos, Devin Mesoraco, Jerry Blevins, and Jose Reyes, who are coming off mediocre seasons and hoping for MLB contracts.

The Yankees have a big group of talented free agents and are likely to bring some of them back. That includes Happ, CC Sabathia, Lance Lynn, Zach Britton, David Robertson and Andrew McCutchen. Happ had one of his best seasons in 2018, going 17-6 with a 3.65 ERA over 31 starts. He was 7-0 with a 2.69 ERA in 11 starts with New York.

The A's are likely to lose some key pieces from their wild-card squad. Among the free agents are Lowrie, Jonathan Lucroy, Trevor Cahill, Jeurys Familia and Shawn Kelley. Lowrie is set to cash in after two straight excellent years, hitting .267-23-99 last season.

Ramos and Asdrubal Cabrera headline the Phillies' free-agent crop. Acquired late in the year from Tampa Bay, Ramos hit .206-15-70 in 416 plate appearances. He could be set for a huge contract after proving that his big 2016 offensive season wasn't a fluke.

Pittsburgh is set to lose a fan favorite in Harrison, with the team wanting to look at younger players in the middle infield. Harrison is a two-time All-Star and still profiles as a utility man, at worst. He struggled due to injuries last season, hitting just .250-8-37 in 374 plate appearances.

Galvis did his job as a placeholder for top prospect Fernando Tatis Jr. The veteran shortstop played 162 games for the second straight season, hitting .248-13-67 for the Padres.

The Giants first order of business is finding a new general manager, but after that they could look to retain Holland and Nick Hundley. They're also set to lose Hunter Pence, Gregor Blanco and Kelby Tomlinson. Holland revived his career last season, posting a 3.57 ERA in 171.1 innings.

Cruz just never seems to stop hitting and is developing power longevity that we haven't seen since David Ortiz. He hit 37 home runs last season, giving him at least that number in five straight seasons. He turned 38 in July.

For two straight years with two different teams, Norris has surprised as a solid closer for most of the year. Now it's probably time he earns a multiyear contract. Matt Adams and Tyson Ross could also be attractive free agents, both of whom joined the Cardinals late last season.

A closer early in his career with the Giants, Romo proved once again that he could handle the role in Tampa last year. He's set to cash in after converting 25 saves with a 4.14 ERA in 67.3 innings. The Rays' other significant free agent is outfielder Carlos Gomez, who could struggle to find a major league deal after a terrible season.

A future Hall of Famer with 3,166 career hits, it remains to be seen if Beltre will continue his career at age 40. He's just 23 home runs away from 500.

Estrada is hoping for a major league deal despite consecutive poor seasons. Yangervis Solarte, Tyler Clippard and Aaron Loup round out a weak crop of free agents after the Jays traded Josh Donaldson and J.A. Happ during the season.

The media has been talking about Harper's eventual free agency for years. Will he be the first $400 million man in MLB? He will be only 26 next season and finished last year with an .889 OPS with 34 home runs. The Nationals should be fine if they let Harper walk due to the emergence of Juan Soto and Victor Robles. The team could also lose Matt Wieters, Jeremy Hellickson and Kelvin Herrera.