Top 3 Free Agent Shortstops Still Available

There's no more Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts or Dansby Swanson on the free agent market (Carlos Correa, nobody's quite sure after the latest with the New York Mets being the 2nd team to question his medicals. We'll leave him out of the following conversation for now, though).

After the Fab Four of the free agent shortstops, the pickings get quite a bit slimmer for teams still in need. The Minnesota Twins, Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers could be looking for a little extra help at the keystone after losing their All-Stars at the position.

And although there are no more stars, there are still some major league-viable shortstops looking for a new team. Here are the top 3 available.

Elvis Andrus

Andrus was not happy when he started to see a loss in playing time for the Oakland A's this past season; the 34-year-old claimed he was still a starter in the big leagues, and forced the Athletics to give him his release. He backed up his words when he signed on with the Chicago White Sox and filled in more than admirably for the injured Tim Anderson. He batted .271 with a .773 OPS, 9 HR and 11 SBs in 43 games. He had an impressive 5.1 fWAR.

Didi Gregorius

Going into his age-33 season, Gregorius has fallen on hard times the past couple of years with the Philadelphia Phillies, suffering from a multitude of injuries, and poor play when he was on the field. Elbow and knee issues limited him to just 103 games in 2021 and only 63 this past season. His average has hovered around .210 and his OPS about .600 over those two years.

It's doubtful he can ever get back to the 25+ home run seasons he had with the New York Yankees a half-decade ago. But perhaps, if he can get healthy, he can still contribute to a team in need.

José Iglesias

Was it the Coors Field effect? The 32-year-old Iglesias hit .292 this past season with the Colorado Rockies with a .708 OPS, a tick above his career norm. He is a lifetime .279 hitter, though his career 32% on-base percentage is middling at best, and his OPS+ of 88 over his 11 years in the bigs is well below average.

His defense, which was his strong suit early in his career, has been declining as he's aged. He was well-below average the past two years in Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average.

Photo: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports