Most important player on every MLB team

Goldschmidt has been a stalwart in the Diamondbacks lineup since he was promoted in 2011, finishing top three in the NL MVP voting three times. He continued to put up mammoth numbers last season, hitting .297-36-120 with a .966 OPS.

Youngsters like Ronald Acuna, Ozzie Albies, and Luiz Gohara could replace Freeman as the Braves top player down the line, but for now this is still Freeman's team. The first baseman continues to ascend as he heads toward his prime, posting a .989 OPS last season.

Entering the final year of his contract, Machado is moving to shortstop full-time and will be tasked with out-hitting opponents with the O's set to roll out a less than stellar starting rotation again in 2018. Machado averaged nearly 7.0 WAR between 2015-16 but regressed slightly last year. He remains a top AL MVP candidate this year.

Boston is loaded with stars, including Sale, David Price, Craig Kimbrel, Mookie Betts, and J.D. Martinez. Given what Sale produced last season and the lack of rotation depth in the upper minors, the loss of Sale would be almost deadly for the 2018 squad. He led the AL in innings and strikeouts while posting a 2.90 ERA last season.

Bryant is one of several stars on the Cubs roster but the only one with an MVP Award. While his counting stats regressed slightly last season, Bryant produced a .946 OPS, the best of his career. After trading Jeimer Candelario to Detroit last offseason, there's less depth if something happens to Bryant this year.

The White Sox are still thinking about the future, and Moncada is clearly their most talented young player. Jose Abreu, Avisail Garcia, and Carlos Rodon have done more at the major league level, but over the next several years there isn't a player the organization is counting on more to produce than Moncada. He shows 30/30 potential at second base.

The Reds will get big contributions from youngsters like Jesse Winker, Nick Senzel, Luis Castillo, and Tyler Mahle in 2018, but any chance at competing in the short term rests on Votto's shoulders. One of the greatest players in franchise history (a statement that can't be taken lightly), Votto finished second in the NL MVP vote last year and won the award in 2010. His career .969 OPS trails only Mike Trout among active players.

With all due respect to two-time AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber, Lindor takes the nod for Cleveland. Just 2.5 seasons into his MLB career, Lindor has already won a Silver Slugger, Gold Glove, and made two All-Star appearances. He's averaged better than 5.0 WAR per season and is just entering his age 24 season.

Arenado just gets better every season, peaking as the fourth place finisher in NL MVP voting last season. He's won the Gold Glove at third base in all five seasons of his career, and currently has a streak of at least 37 home runs and 130 RBI in three consecutive seasons.

Prior to this season, Miguel Cabrera was clearly the most important hitter on the Tigers. That changed after a terrible 2017 season, and the organization is now in rebuilding mode. Castellanos had a career-high 26 home runs and 72 extra-base hits last season, and some feel he's just getting started as he enters his prime. He's one of the few reasons Tigers fans have reason to look forward to 2018.

It's tough to find qualms with the reigning AL MVP as the most important player on the Astros, but he does have plenty of competition for that title. Carlos Correa, George Springer, and Justin Verlander are all key pieces of the puzzle for Houston. It shouldn't shock anyone if Correa or Springer finish the season with more MVP votes than Altuve, if they don't win the award themselves.

The Royals are in clear rebuilding mode after losing Eric Hosmer, Lorenzo Cain, and Mike Moustakas. One key piece of their 2015 World Series team that is still going strong is Perez, and he's signed through 2021. Perez has won four Gold Gloves and had a career-high 27 home runs and 80 RBI last season.

The best player in the game, Trout has two MVP Awards and has finished top four in the voting in each of the last six seasons. He has the highest career OPS of any active player, and he's somehow just entering his age 26 season. The Angels have added plenty of talent around Trout this season, including Shohei Ohtani, but Trout will play the biggest role in this year's success.

After falling just short of a World Series title last season, the Dodgers return largely the same roster. That roster has several hitting stars like Corey Seager, Cody Bellinger, and Justin Turner, but the pitching staff is clearly led by Kershaw. Still the best pitcher in the game when he's healthy, Kershaw finished second in NL Cy Young voting last year despite only making 27 starts. With a very competitive NL West division that could be even better following San Diego's acquisition of Eric Hosmer, Kershaw will need to be on his game again.

The Marlins are in full rebuild mode, and have proven they're ready to trade any veteran. While J.T. Realmuto and Justin Bour have proven track records, both could be elsewhere as early as Opening Day. The best prospect we'll see on this year's roster is Brinson, who was acquired from Milwaukee for Christian Yelich. The former first-round pick hit .331-13-48 in 76 games at Triple-A last season, and is one of the few reasons Marlins fans have reason to show up to the ballpark.

A strong offense has gotten even better this offseason by adding Lorenzo Cain and Christian Yelich, but Milwaukee's pitching staff will determine how far they can go in 2018. Jimmy Nelson is expected to miss at least a month after shoulder surgery, and the additions of Jhoulys Chacin and Yovani Gallardo aren't exactly imposing. After increasing his velocity last season, Anderson had a 2.74 ERA in 25 starts, and he needs to keep it up for this roster to avoid turning into the NL's version of the Orioles.

Buxton did almost nothing at the plate during the first half of last season, but he led the Twins in WAR by the end of the year. That's due in large part to his elite defense in center field, but Buxton also had an .893 OPS after the break. The former top prospect is a budding MLB star, and could get MVP consideration if he can hit over a full season.

The Mets have had a quiet and interesting offseason, adding players like Todd Frazier, Adrian Gonzalez, and Jay Bruce. The lineup is deeper than many think, but ultimately Syndergaard will be the biggest difference maker if the team rebounds. Syndergaard has proven he's one of the top pitchers in the game when he's healthy, posting a 2.60 ERA in 183.2 innings during 2016.

Make no mistake, the Yankees lineup and bullpen are both arguably the best in the game. The lineup has added reigning NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton to a lineup that already includes Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez, while the bullpen has at least three pitchers in Aroldis Chapman, Dellin Betances, and David Robertson that would be the best pitcher in most MLB pens. It's the rotation that has it's question marks, and Severino is a clear ace after last season. He must pitch like it again this season, or the Yankees will be forced to make more moves.

Oakland is in a rebuild, but there's no lack of interesting hitters on the team. Olson possibly has the most upside, and he showed it late last season. He hit 20 home runs over the last two months of the season, and he's also shown a consistent willingness to draw walks, taking more than 100 free passes twice in the minors. After some early-career hiccups, Olson looks like a middle of the order hitter in Oakland for years to come.

New manager Gabe Kapler has an impressive list of hitters at his disposal, including Rhys Hoskins, Nick Williams, Jorge Alfaro, and Maikel Franco. At least for now, the rotation does look rather thin, but Nola is starting to establish himself as an ace. Rebounding from an elbow injury, he posted a 3.54 ERA and 3.27 FIP in 27 starts last season.

Pittsburgh has reshuffled this offseason, trading two faces of the franchise in Andrew McCutchen and Gerrit Cole. There is still strong talent remaining, led by Marte. He missed nearly half of 2017 due to a PEDs suspension, but his average WAR as above 5.0 in the four previous seasons because of his high batting average, speed, and defense.

San Diego rolled out the red carpet for Hosmer this offseason, giving the team another middle of the order hitter to add to Wil Myers. After winning only 71 games last season, the Padres clearly feel they're not far away, but a team in their smaller market can't afford for a $144 million contract to go south. They've faced heavy criticism for the contract, but Hosmer was a 4.0 WAR player last season.

The Giants lineup was incredibly bad last season, but have tried to address their issues by acquiring Evan Longoria and Andrew McCutchen during the offseason. Those moves should help, but this is still Posey's team. The former NL MVP had only 12 home runs last season, but still produced an .861 OPS, winning the Silver Slugger.

Felix Hernandez remains the biggest name on the Mariners pitching staff, but Paxton has overtaken him as their best pitcher. The lefty posted a 2.98 ERA in 24 starts last season, and is the only elite option on an otherwise mediocre pitching staff. The lineup that includes Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz, and Kyle Seager will keep the team on the board, but Paxton needs to deliver for the M's to compete with Houston and the Angels in the AL West.

The Cardinals have been caught in between this offseason, trying to add to an 83-win team without breaking the bank. They've done with by adding Marcell Ozuna and Miles Mikolas, but the key players from last year's roster also need to perform better. One of them is Carpenter, who hit just .241 last season with an .835 OPS, his lowest since 2014. Carpenter's versatility still makes him extremely valuable, with the ability to play both infield corners, but the Cardinals need a rebound from him after finishing in the middle of the pack in runs last season.

Tampa Bay still has a very deep pitching staff, but they've been shedding hitters all offseason, including Logan Morrison, Evan Longoria, and Corey Dickerson. To compete this year, it's clear that the Rays plan on out-pitching opponents, led by their ace, Archer. If they fall out of the race early, Archer could be on his way out of town, and a trade would make a huge difference in the team's future.

The Rangers lineup is still loaded with talent, with youngsters like Joey Gallo, Nomar Mazara, Rougned Odor, and Willie Calhoun, as well as veterans Adrian Beltre, Elvis Andrus, and Shin-Shoo Choo. The problem is their pitching, especially after traded Yu Darvish last offseason. They are clearly counting on Hamels to return to ace form after he posted a 4.20 ERA in 24 starts last season. With a strikeout rate that plummeted last season, that hope might be foolish.

Donaldson enters a walk year on a Blue Jays roster that has a very tough task ahead. The team made the playoffs in 2016, but big boppers Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista are gone from the roster. Donaldson is clearly the team's most talented player, now in a walk year. The former AL MVP will try to hold up the offense while the pitching staff hopefully gets better contributions from Aaron Sanchez and Marco Estrada this season.

Harper enters his walk year at age 25 after posting an OPS above 1.000 for the second time last year. The Nats scored the third most runs in the NL last season with Harper as the centerpiece, and he could need to pick up the slack early on with Daniel Murphy (knee) questionable for the start of the year. Harper is certainly capable of winning his second MVP with a healthy season.