Best landing spots for 3 newly-available MLB free agents 

As opening day creeps closer, all major-league teams are making the final adjustments to what will soon become their opening-day rosters. With this comes the official promotions of top prospects, the final chances for long-time veterans, and the release/signing of players who need a new home. What an exciting time this is for baseball fans! 

Of all the roster moves made over the past few days, it is the last of the three listed above that excites me the most. In the past 48 hours, Mike Moustakas, Kevin Pillar, Charlie Culberson, and Phil Bickford were released/cut by their teams and are no searching for a new team willing to take a chance on them. 

All four of these players still have juice left in them and should have no problems finding new homes in the MLB. They all could make an impact on any given team, assuming they are given the right chance and put into the correct role(s). Some teams, however, will pursue these free agents harder than others, as they have more money available to spend or have a larger role to fill on the diamond.

Here are what I believe to be the best landing spots for all four of these newly-available free agents: 

All statistics used in this article were taken from FanGraphs.com

Mike Moustakas, 1B/3B

Mike Moustakas, 35, was set to begin his fourteenth major league season before being released by the Chicago White Sox earlier this week. Moustakas has been a reliable major league player for the better part of the past decade and was an integral member of the 2015 World Series champion Kansas City Royals.  

Moustakas’s career slash line is .247/.307/.431, and he has hit 215 total home runs. His best days (where he was a borderline all-star) are surely behind him, but that's not to say he can no longer produce at the major league level. Over the past two seasons, Moustakas is slashing .233/.294/.373 and has hit 19 home runs and tallied up 73 RBIs.

The team that will go after Moustakas likely will not be a team that is contending for a pennant but rather a young, rebuilding team looking for a veteran presence to help show the younger players how to win. Moustakas will also likely spend most of his time next season as a bench bat, as he is a liability on defence and is more valuable platooning against righties.

The best landing spot for Moustakas: The Pittsburgh Pirates

Charlie Culberson, UTL/P

Charlie Culberson, who was released by Atlanta earlier this week, is currently facing quite unique circumstances. Culberson (aged 34), fed up with his inability to consistently contribute to a major league ball-club, has decided to take up pitching.

Over the years, Culberson has stepped onto the pitcher's mound for eight relief appearances, totaling 7.1 innings. During this year's Spring Training, Culberson took the mound in three games, yielding six earned runs across two innings. In terms of hitting, Culberson boasts a career slash line of .248/.294/.386 across 1,312 plate appearances. Since his major league debut with the Giants in 2012, he has played for five different MLB teams and played all over the infield.

As he explores a potential shift to pitching, Culberson has encountered some challenges. It's uncertain whether he will further pursue pitching or revert to his versatile utility role, potentially offering depth to a team in need of experienced position players. If he could somehow quickly start showing promise as a pitcher, he could land a deal on a rebuilding team with the hope of becoming a duel threat. 

The best landing spot for Culberson: The Colorado Rockies

Phil Bickford

Phil Bickford was DFA’d by the  New York Mets earlier this week and is now in search of a new home. Bickford, 28, has already moved around the National League through his five big league seasons, most recently being acquired by the Mets from the Los Angeles Dodgers last summer.

Last season, over 67.1 innings pitched for L.A. and New York, Bickford recorded a 4.95 ERA and an above-average strikeout rate of 25%. However, he permitted a significant amount of hard contact and had a walk rate of 12.8%, positioning him in the lowest fifth percentile among all pitchers. Still, with his walk rate high, Pickford should have no problem finding a spot in a major league ‘pen. 

Luckily for Bickford, the market for middle-of-the-pack relievers is quite high and in demand right now. Bickford will likely sign a short-term deal until he can prove himself worthy of more, but he really may have many options of teams/cities to choose from. He could land a large role on a poor team or a minor role on a competitive team. Of those two options, however, the former is more formidable. 

The best landing spot for Bickford: The Cincinnati Reds