2011 Free Agent Predictions

Yes I know, I am a little late to the party, but it's not my fault that the prediction emails were still coming in as of Wednesday. Not to mention, some of them weren't even filled all of the way out (Mr. Anonymous). If you go back and look at the predictions from StartWedman's 2011 Free Agent prediction piece, the results were not good. Somehow, Mr. Anonymous won with only 5 correct free agent picks. Terrible. However, this is the year that we all come out on top and correctly predict each and every free agent. Or at least the most important ones to us.

1. Albert Pujols - Three out of the four writers that contributed to the predictions think that Prince Albert will be staying at home with the St. Louis Cardinals. Only Peck, who will now start out 0 for 1, believes that he will land with the Yankees.

2. Prince Fielder - Now this one is a little more split up. We all threw out different teams in a hope that one of us nails the correct option. However, you can be sure that Fielder will end up playing for the Rangers, Angels, Giants, or Nationals by the end of the off-season.

3. Michael Cuddyer - Two votes for the Twins, one for the Red Sox, and one for the Royals puts Cuddyer in the category of "who really cares?".

4. Craig Counsell - While he may be approaching the ripe age of 50, Counsell is still an integral part of any playoff baseball team. He provides a sub .200 batting average with below average. . .well below average power. Still, he will be taking his talents to the Brewers (2 votes), Royals, or Cardinals.

5. Jose Reyes - Even with the latest reports that he may be signing with the Marlins, here at StartWedman, we know all. Even though Mr. Anonymous refused to vote for this one, the majority of the writers believe that he will end up signing with the Red Sox, while I think the Giants will pay for his talents.

6. Jimmy Rollins - Phillies for all four votes. We are probably going to be wrong on that one.

7. Nick Punto - He was an interesting variety of choices from the StartWedman staff. Realistically, he will sign with either the Giants or Cardinals. However, other options included playing for the Italian national team or passing away this off-season.

8. Omar Vizquel - Between retirement, becoming a player/coach for the Marlins, or signing with the Indians or Giants, young Omar Vizquel seems to have an amazing break out season planned for 2012. On a side note, where does he find such tight baseball pants?

9. Josh Willingham - A power bat with a decent average is always a hot commodity on the free agent market. The Cubs, White Sox, Nationals, and Brewers are all contending for his services.

10. Coco Crisp - Whether it is stealing 50+ bases or providing you with a delicious breakfast, Coco should find a new home pretty quickly. Cooly believes the White Sox will swap out weak hitting lefty speed (Pierre) for weak hitting lefty speed when they sign Crisp. Other votes were for Indians (2) and the Royals.

11. Grady Sizemore - Since the Red Sox just met with Grady, and I chose Grady to go to the Red Sox, I am pretty sure that I am, and always will be, correct. Mets, Rays, and Athletics also received votes.

12. Carlos Beltran - Giants, Tigers, Red Sox, or Rangers. He may have just rally killed this article.

13. Brandon Webb - There isn't much buzz right now on the status of this former Cy Young winner's destination. Mr. Anonymous refused to vote, Cooly thinks he will be playing slow pitch softball with Eric Byrnes, while Peck and I think he could land with the Braves or Nationals.

14. Roy Oswalt - I think most people forget what a dominant pitcher he was with the Astros. Derailed by injury last year, 2012 will be the chance for him to get back on track. Whether it is with the Yankees (2), Astros, or Rockies, Oswalt is still good. Also, please check out the link on his name. Awesome.

15. Yu Darvish - Besides all of the amazing Asian promo videos he is bringing to the United States, Darvish will also bring a solid season for one lucky team. Peck still thinks he will end up back in Japan, but the Blue Jays, Yankees, and Cubs are all favored to win his talents. The logo on his jersey though does look like the new Miami Marlins style. . .

16. Bruce Chen - Or should we call him. . .MVP of the universe. Dominant master of the world. Bruce Chen defines what all is man. However, that didn't mean that Mr. Anonymous would vote for him. The other three writers did though and think he will end up pitching for the Red Sox, Yankees, or Royals in 2012.

Random picks will land Aramis Ramirez with the Newark Bears or the Pirates. So there you have it. While it isn't a complete list of the 2011 MLB Free Agents, it is the only one that matters. If you don't like it, you can get out.