Where will a 2008 Phillies World Champion sign?
Our Frank Klose opened the year by pointing out that neither Jimmy Rollins or Shane Victorino, two key cogs in the greatest five-year run in franchise history, appeared close to having a home for the 2016 season.
Since then, it's been reported that some teams are interested in Rollins if he were willing to make a transition to second-base. As for Victorino, Nick Cafardo the Boston Globe has an update on his free-agency.
Victorino is healthy again, switch-hitting, and ready to contribute to a team like only he can. Agent John Boggs said there have been inquiries, but teams are waiting for the free agent outfield pool to thin out. “We have a couple of teams that have been nibbling, but don’t know when they become fully engaged,” Boggs said.
Victorino helped to lead the Boston Red Sox to the World Series in 2013, his first season in bean-town, but struggled to stay healthy during his time there. He was limited to 122 games in 2013, just 30 in 2014, and 71 total last season with both the Red Sox and Los Angeles Angels.
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It's also fair to ask exactly how much Victorino has left even when he is healthy. He batted .230 last season in 178 at-bats, while homering just once. His fielding, which Fangraphs rated as a 19.5 dWAR in 2013, has also taken a step back, with Fangraphs rating his shortened 2015 season as a -0.9, which is actually better than the -2.1 that he posted in 2014.
He's certainly a great guy to have in the clubhouse, but given his recent inability to stay healthy and uncertainty about exactly what he is as a player at this stage of his career, it's not hard to understand how his market is taking this long to develop.
