MLB free agency: One player each team should sign

MLB free agency: One free agent each team should sign

CHICAGO, IL - SEPTEMBER 24: Kansas City Royals First base Eric Hosmer (35) during the game between the Kansas City Royals and the Chicago White Sox on September 24, 2017 at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago, Illinois.(Photo by Jerome Lynch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

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DENVER, CO – SEPTEMBER 5: Mark Reynolds #12 of the Colorado Rockies watches his RBI double during the sixth inning against the San Francisco Giants at Coors Field on September 5, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /

Tampa Bay Rays: Mark Reynolds

The Rays struck gold with first baseman Logan Morrison this season, getting nearly 40 home runs out of the journeyman first baseman who is on a cheap contract. LoMo is heading back out to free agency this year, and should be looking for a longer-term deal that may be out of the Rays price range. The front office will have to turn to a deep pool of power-hitting free agents to replace him.

Mark Reynolds has played the last two years of his career with the Rockies, and his $1.5-million salary this season was one of the best bargains in the league. Reynolds bailed the Rockies out when Ian Desmond was injured in Spring Training and Carlos Gonzalez struggled all year. Once a free swinger who was good for 200 strikeouts a year, Reynolds has found contact much easier to come by in Colorado.

Reynolds fell into a starting role with the Rockies this year, but there are no guarantee for him there next year and beyond. He has proven that he is still more than capable of being an everyday player, not a platoon or bench option. Colorado is a good fit for his skills and power, but Reynolds should be looking for the best situation for himself. That means a place where he is certain to start.

Tampa Bay will always have to look for power at the lower end of the financial spectrum. Reynolds will fall into the second tier of power hitters available. The Rays may actually be able to afford to sign him and bring Morrison back to form a rotation between first base and DH with Corey Dickerson.

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