Best and Worst Free Agent Signings AL

Yesterday we looked at the best (and the worst) National League free agent signings. Today, let's look at the best and worst from the American League:

• Catcher - Best: Jason Varitek. Worst: Michael Barrett/Chad Moeller. Jason Varitek rebounded from his worst season in the majors last year to have his best season since 2005 so far. He'll never hit for average but his .240/.335/.485 line is fine for a catcher and he has 11 homers. Michael Barrett and Chad Moeller are two of the worst backups in the league. Combined, they have an awful 13 hits, 4 walks, 2 HR, and 4 RBI in 73 PAs.
• First Base - Best: Russell Branyan/Mark Teixeira. Worst: Kevin Millar. Russell Branyan has been one of the biggest surprises of the first half so far. He's .303/.400/.609 with 19 HR and is playing against lefties. Imagine if someone would have given him a starting role before this. Tex has been great for the Yankees after a rough April. Although Branyan's splits are slightly better, Tex has 22 more RBIs, 9 more walks, and 26 less Ks. Some of that has to do with who is in the lineup with you, but Tex has been a huge part of the Yankees attack so far and has played Gold Glove 1B. Kevin Millar has 155 PA and a .243/.316/.379 line. I know he's supposed to be great the clubhouse, but if that's the case, then make him a coach. I left Jason Giambi off this list because, despite a .200, he's still walked more than Teixeira in 40 less PAs.
• Second Base - None. There were no second base free agent signings in the American League.
• Shortstop - Best: Omar Vizquel. Worst: Orlando Cabrera/Cesar Izturis/Nick Punto. This was a weak class. Omar Vizquel, however, is the best of the worst. He's hitting .300 and has always had a great glove (though old age has slowed him down some). Orlando Cabrera has been awful this year with a .247/.291/.318 line in 327 PAs with 2 SB and 4 CS. That's an even worse OPS than Cesar Izturis, although Cabrera at least has 17 XBHs to Izturis' 7 and 20 BBs to Izturis' 5. Nick Punto is one of the worst hitters in the game. He's at .220/.313/.247 with no homeruns. Why the Twins continue to give him ABs is beyond me. Let's get past the idea that he's somehow a "piranha" that's going to help this team.
• Third Base - Best: Joe Crede. Worst: None. There was one free agent signing at 3rd base in the AL and he's been pretty good. Although he has a low average, Crede has hit 11 HRs with a high slugging and has cut down somewhat on his K-rate. He's not great, but there are so many negative hitters in that lineup (Matt Tolbert, Nick Punto, Delmon Young and Carlos Gomez) that he looks really good in contrast.
• Outfield - Best: Juan Rivera/Gabe Kapler/Bobby Abreu. Worst: Willie Bloomquist. Juan Rivera is a player who is continually underrated. He has a .307/.348/.514 line to go along with 13 HR and 43 RBI (both second ion the team behind Torii Hunter) and only 25 Ks. Gabe Kapler has been a better hitter than B.J. Upton, Pat Burrell, or Matt Joyce (who they traded for Edwin Jackson...ouch) so far this season. Abreu is just steady: .299/.397/.422 with 17 SB (on 20 attempts) and 42 BBs. Special Mention here to Rocco Baldelli and Scott Podsednik who have done good jobs as reserve OFs this season. Willie Bloomquist isn't all that bad, but isn't great either. He's played every position but pitcher and catcher so far this season but his .694 OPS isn't good for any of them.
• Designated Hitter - Best: Hank Blalock. Worst: Pat Burrell. Blalock doesn't hit for a high average or walk a lot, but his .502 SLG will help out his cause, as will his 14 HRs. Out of 51 hits, 27 are for extra bases. Special Mention to Ken Griffey, Jr. who is actually 3rd in homeruns and OPS on the Mariners (which probably says more about the team's hitting than his). Pat is not "the bat" this year. I thought this was a good signing for Tampa but Burrell is off to a .233/.345/.327 start with only 3 HRs. Ouch.
• Starting Pitching - Best: CC Sabathia/A.J. Burnett. Worst: Carl Pavano. Sabathia and Burnett have started to really turn it on for the Yankees. CC has a 3.55 ERA, a 1.092 WHIP, a 2.52 K/BB ratio, and a .615 OPS against. A.J. has a 3.93 ERA and 8.81 K/9. Carl Pavano, despite a 6-6 record has a 5.80 ERA and has given up 107 hits in 85.1 innings with an .828 OPS against. I think the Yankees should be happy Pavano is gone and the other two are in his place. Bartolo Colon, Andy Pettitte, and Brad Penny have been average so far and John Smoltz had one bad start but the jury is still out.
• Relief Pitching - Best: Darren Oliver/Matt Herges/Brandon Lyon. Worst: Damaso Marte/Juan Cruz/Horacio Ramirez. Oliver has been a pleasant surprise for the Angels, posting a 3.00 ERA in 33 innings for a bad bullpen, with a SO-BB rate over 2-1. Matt Herges has a 3.70 ERA, a WHIP of 1.110, a .663 OPS against and a K/BB ratio of 3.40 for the Indians. Brandon Lyon has been a reliable arm in the Detroit 'pen with a 3.89 ERA and a WHIP of 1.162 in 37 innings. Marte was a mistake from the beginning but the Yankees wanted to have something to show long-term from their trade with the Pirates. Before he got hurt, though, Marte wasn't worth a bag of balls. Juan Cruz cost the Royals a draft pick and has been pretty bad with a 5.47 ERA in 31 innings with only 6.39 K/9 which is way below what you expect from him. Horacio Ramirez is another one of the Royals relievers signed in the offseason to shore up the bullpen (Jamey Wright and Kyle Farnsworth as well) and Ramirez has not been good with a 5.96 ERA and well over a hit an inning leading to a 1.676 WHIP, only a 1.18 K/BB ratio and only 5.16 K/9.
• Closer - Best: Brian Fuentes. Worst: Kerry Wood. I think that the Angels should have made more of an effort to resign K-Rod, especially with the money they threw at CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira, but Fuentes hasn't been bad with a 3.76 ERA and 21 saves. And while most don't think of him as a strikeout pitcher, he has 10.25 SO/9 innings and has only allowed a .676 OPS against. Kerry Wood also has 10.25 SO/9 innings, but has an ERA of 5.47, a WHIP of 1.557 and only 9 saves. With 5 HRs allowed and a .837 OPS against, opposing hitters seem to be teeing off of Wood. The Indians thought that they were getting a solid back-end to their bullpen but Wood's been really shaky so far. 

Agree? Disagree? It certainly seems that there were very few big free agents signed by AL teams besides the Yankees expenditures, but also few gems have been found in the AL. Russell Branyan is definitely the best free agent signing in the American League judging by price, expectations and impact.