Saturday was a relatively slow news day, so I'm going to spend today's column on the off-season ritual of composing a lineup solely of remaining free agents. This has always seemed a bit silly to me, because you always have to use some players in ways that real teams never will. Plus you really have to put aside all considerations of age, injury history, etc. in an exercise like this if you want to include most of the top remaining free agents and avoid losing your mind. However, it's more interesting than just doing another straight rumor piece. Speculation, suggestions, and rumors are included in the discussions of the free agents.

Without further ado, I give to you my All Free Agent Lineup:

Leading off and Playing Left Field, Rickey Henderson
Now while it's quite natural to jump to Rickey as the automatic choice for the leadoff slot when assembling a team, Rickey's advancing age and the fact that the majority of the remaining talent is also located in the outfield did make me hesitate for a while. However, Rickey's numbers are still on par with those of the other leadoff candidates, and Rickey has defined what teams search for when filling that role.

At 43, Rickey is still worth a roster spot and should even start on some teams. I haven't really heard much buzz about where Rickey is expected to go this off-season, but I tend to think that the Oakland Athletics should bring Rickey back for yet another go-round.

With Johnny Damon's departure as a free agent, they are short an outfielder and a leadoff hitter. Rickey would allow them to move Terrance Long back to centerfield and fill those needs. Rickey's old, but Rickey should be relatively inexpensive and at least a few extra fans should come out to the ballpark to watch Rickey continue to add to Rickey's record collection, which includes #1 Hits in Stolen Bases, Walks, Runs, and third person references to oneself.

Hitting 2nd and Playing Center Field, Kenny Lofton
Lofton is not exactly a spring chicken himself, but while he has probably lost the edge that made him a good leadoff hitter, he's still a guy you can safely place in the two hole.

His age and injury history are likely the reason he is still available on the market. Right now, I'd probably recommend that the San Francisco Giants take a look at him. They are going to have to devote a large portion of their payroll to Bonds, but there is no reason to expect that they should see a big fall off in attendance from last year, given his return and the success of the new ballpark. While they do have to consider the present expenses surrounding the new stadium, it should eventually pay for itself.

Even with Bonds, they need more production than they can get from their current outfield. If they spend a little more to get another bat, then they might be able to field a successful team that can actually reach the playoffs, as opposed to trying to save a few extra million dollars in payroll and throwing money away on a team with a better than .500 record but no shot at the big prize. Lofton would get them most of the way there for a reasonable price. Juan Gonzalez would almost certainly get them all of the way there, but they won't pay to sign him.

If Milwaukee completes a trade involving Burnitz or another outfielder, then I might recommend the Brewers get in on the bidding.

Hitting 3rd and Playing Right Field, Reggie Sanders
Reggie Sanders and my affinity for old leadoff hitters are the reasons that I included a designated hitter in this lineup. Again, he's old and injury prone, but when healthy, his numbers are hard to overlook.

I think that the New York Mets should seriously consider signing Sanders. As discussed in yesterday's article, they need another real outfielder and they don't quite want to spend what Juan Gonzalez will probably cost. They could fill the opening through a trade, but Sanders should be about the right price and they certainly have the backups to cover if he suffers an injury or simply to spell him during the season to avoid injury problems before they occur.

Sanders would also be another alternative for the Giants. However, I should mention that although they desperately need someone this season, they shouldn't sign anyone to more than a one-year deal (possibly with a club option for a 2nd year), because they do have several outfield prospects who should be arriving in the majors relatively soon.

Batting Clean-Up as the Designated Hitter, Juan Gonzalez
While I fully believe that Gonzalez is more than capable of playing the outfield, I've decided to stick him at DH in order to fit an extra outfielder into my lineup.

Obviously the biggest rumor surrounding Juan Gone is that he will be the Mets' next big acquisition. He wants to join the party that Steve Phillips is putting together at Shea, and several players on the team, including Roberto Alomar, with whom Gonzalez played last season in Cleveland, and Mike Piazza, have expressed their desire to see him added to the roster. However, the most recent noises from the front office indicate that management might have other plans that don't include significant commitments of cash and playing time to injury-prone players.

The Baltimore Orioles are known to have money to spend, though they appear to be having difficulties finding a beneficiary to endow. With Chris Richard out for the majority of the season, they have openings in the outfield and Gonzalez would certainly be a player that the fans could appreciate. However, I tend to think that he would require them to pay full price before volunteering to play with the current mess that is the Orioles.

This may be a case where Gonzalez doesn't want to play for the team that's interested in him, but the team that he's interested in doesn't want him.

Depending on the amount of work Colorado GM Dan O'Dowd wants to put into making room for him, the Rockies might be a very good fit for Gonzalez. A power bat in left field would make their lineup look very good. However, O'Dowd would probably need to clear payroll by potentially trading Todd Hollandsworth, Alex Ochoa, and an overpriced role player like Mike Myers.

As a closet Cardinal fan, I have to say that I think it would be extremely neat if St. Louis splurged and brought him in, but I'm also a realist. After signing Tino Martinez, there is almost no chance that they will even think twice about adding his contract to their payroll. He also is a bit of an awkward fit in their lineup and should probably stay in the American League in case injuries force him to become a full time DH.

Hitting 5th and Platooning at 1B, Matt Stairs and Andres Galarraga As previously mentioned in past articles, Stairs is probably better suited to a platoon in LF, but I didn't feel comfortable giving Galarraga a full-time position at the current stage of his career.

I am currently recommending that the Anahiem Angels sign both of these players. Stairs has the ability to play 1B, LF, and DH, which given Mo Vaughn's departure, fits very well with what the Angels need. Galarraga might be better off taking a graceful bow out of baseball, but his "veteran leadership" would probably be very good for the Anaheim clubhouse. The Angels' lineup could certainly use the power available in their bats, and the club should have the cash and roster slots available to add both players. Stairs and Galarraga would go a long way towards solidifying the team's offense.

Hitting in the 6th Slot and Playing Second Base, Eric Young
On most other teams, EY would certainly be hitting either leadoff or in the two hole, but given that their numbers were relatively similar, history won out and put Rickey at the top of the order.

If they don't sign Henderson, Young might be a decent pick up for the Athletics. Esteban German should be just about ready, but as long as he doesn't blaze through spring training, a month or two at AAA should have him very prepared and delay his arbitration eligibility and free agency an extra year. In the meantime, Young's presence would take pressure off the rookie, and he fills Johnny Damon's leadoff slot for Oakland. As soon as German is fully ready, the A's can trade EY to whatever team finds themselves in need of a replacement. Of course they shouldn't offer him more than a one-year contract, just in case they are unable to find a an interested organization.

Pittsburgh might also be interested in Young, although they really should give Warren Morris one last shot at 2B. However, the current disarray of their infield makes me hesitant to strongly recommend anything.

Batting 7th and Playing Third Base, Randy Velarde
Velarde fits with the vintage look of our lineup, and I like the little bit of power he provides.

I think he would be a very good fit in Toronto, where he could provide the team with a fail safe for rookie Eric Hinske at 3B and a general infield utilityman. This is another situation where I would not offer the player more than a one-year contract.

Looking elsewhere, Colorado is one of the few teams looking for a third baseman. However, while I think that Velarde is the type of player who would probably do very well in Coors, I'm not sure they would have much interest in him. Although, he might be a good compliment to the Petrick experiment I suggested yesterday for 3B.

Shortly after Tim wrote his commentary on Petrick during catcher week, Colorado resident Gene McCaffrey of Wise Guy Baseball wrote in with the following comments:

"But, and there's always a but, the problem with Ben Petrick is not his bat; he can't catch. I mean, he can't throw either, but he has fundamental difficulties catching a baseball. The pitchers don't like throwing to him for this reason. Look at his numbers, 8 errors and 11 passed balls in 70 games, and take it from someone who sees lots of Rockies' games, it was worse than the numbers in real life. The Rockies might move him to leftfield, but then again don't be surprised if he gets traded. As I understand it, coach Fred Kendall (Jason's father) keeps insisting that Petrick can be a good defensive catcher, and who knows he could even be right. Ben might wind up the regular except for not catching Mike Hampton, that's best-case. Bottom line for now: at his 2001 fielding level Ben Petrick can't be a catcher in the major leagues no matter what he hits."

I wanted to pull this for yesterday's article, but it didn't happen before we posted, so I thought I would include it here. It is always good to hear about players from people who live near their home team, as they can often provide additional data. This information from Gene reinforces my suspicions about Petrick's problems, and leaves open the possibility of a position move for the catcher, although not to 3B as I had in mind. I think I've grown quite attached to the idea of this trial, and I hope that it occurs to someone in the Rockies front office. If you know someone who knows someone who knows Dan O'Dowd, please pass this suggestion along.

Hitting 8th and Catching, Scott Hatteberg
I just think that Hatteberg is a better overall catcher than Tony Eusebio.

It is highly likely that he will have signed with Oakland by the time that you read this. I will save any further comments for discussion after his signing is official.

Hitting 9th at Shortstop, Pokey Reese
By sticking Reese at the end of the order, we can take advantage of his speed in front of the leadoff men when we bat around. We also don't have to worry as much about his OBA remaining at a very low level.

Pokey has jumped from organization to organization this off-season and still needs a home. After non-tendering Deivi Cruz and losing their bid for free agent Ricky Gutierrez to Cleveland, Detroit is expected to go hard after Reese. As a fly ball hitter, Pokey should do alright in Comerica Park as long as the opposing team's outfielders aren't overly quick on their feet (the combination of the White Sox and Kansas City leadfoots (leadfeet?) with the unbalanced schedule could be very good for his average).

However, despite the sounds of silence when the Reds were looking to trade Reese, there are likely to be several other bidders.

Canned Hams' Lineup
1. Rickey Henderson, LF
2. Kenny Lofton, CF
3. Reggie Sanders, RF
4. Juan Gonzalez, DH
5. Matt Stairs/Andres Galarraga, 1B
6. Eric Young, 2B
7. Randy Velarde, 3B
8. Scott Hatteberg, C
9. Pokey Reese, SS

There you have it. For the most part they are over-priced and old, but it's not a half-bad collection of guys. Hopefully there will be some actual activity in the next few days, but I know things will slow down again at some point, so I will leave the pitching staff and/or bench players for another day. I realize that this type of article is probably going to have half of you strongly disagreeing with me, so feel free to send in your opinions about my choices and/or your suggestions for the pitching staff, and I will try to address them either in a future article or with an e-mail.