Giants: Potential landing spots for free agent Kevin Pillar

The Philadelphia Phillies are facing a very uncertain situation in center field with the suspension of outfielder Odubel Herrera for his role in a domestic violence dispute.

Herrera received an 85-game suspension, but he has been on a downward trend over the past couple of seasons. Since the start of 2018, the outfielder has posted an 88 OPS+ across 736 plate appearances to go along with -14 DRS as an outfielder.

The 27-year-old is signed to a contract that runs through 2021 with team options in 2022 and 2023. But given his declining production and off-the-field baggage, the Phillies may decide it is best to move on from the former All-Star.

Currently, the Phillies have Bryce Harper and Andrew McCutchen penciled in as their corner outfielders. Harper has never been known for having a good glove, despite posting 9 DRS as a right fielder in 2019. Similarly, McCutchen’s days as a Gold Glove outfielder are far behind him.

Scott Kingery spent plenty of time in the outfield last season, but he has more professional experience in the infield. He will likely see more of the infield dirt after the Phillies decided to non-tender long-time second baseman Cesar Hernandez.

Jay Bruce remains on the Phillies roster, but he is looking more like a bench player at this point in his career. Plus, it would not be surprising if the Phillies decided to move the left-handed slugger.

The Phillies also have Adam Haseley, but they will want to pair him with a more experienced outfielder. That is where Pillar could come into play.

In Haseley’s brief career in the major leagues, he has struggled to the tune of a .531 OPS against southpaws. To better set him up for success, the Phillies could look at Pillar as a veteran leader and platoon complement.

Plus, after the Phillies signed Zack Wheeler to a five-year, $118 million contract, they are conveying to the rest of the league that they are serious about contending.

They will need depth in case Haseley struggles, and adding Pillar gives them that in the form of a decent all-around player. They are short on prospect capital, so a dive into free agency for center field help makes sense for the Phillies.

The Chicago Cubs have a lot of outfielders, including Jason Heyward, Kyle Schwarber, Ian Happ, and Albert Almora. However, each player is either still developing or struggles in more than one facet of the game.

So, is it wise to add another player to the bunch?

Almora appeared in 125 games as a center fielder for the Cubs in 2019, but was worth -1.0 WAR and posted a 66 OPS+, so the Cubs will likely look for better offensive production.

Similar to Almora, Happ is still developing as a player. He spent considerable time with the Cubs Triple-A affiliate in 2019 to work on his approach at the plate, and when he earned a promotion, his hard work paid off as he posted a 126 OPS+ in 156 plate appearances.

Happ has the versatility to play all over the field, and it is likely that the Cubs will continue to use him in that super-utility role.

Throughout their careers, Heyward and Schwarber have generated a .648 OPS and .658 OPS, respectively, against left-handed pitchers. Both players would benefit from fewer plate appearances against southpaws.

Pillar’s right-handed bat would pair well with Heyward and Schwarber, while also giving the Cubs better coverage for when they play against a tough left-handed pitcher.

The Cubs are light on minor league talent, and their farm system ranks as one of the worst in baseball, so trading away prospect capital is not a viable option to improve their center field position. However, they have been dangling catcher Willson Contreras in trade talks, and have often been connected to Kansas City Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield.

In addition to this, they have limited payroll space. According to Spotrac, the Cubs already have $214 million committed to the 2020 roster, which is $6 million over the Collective Bargaining Tax (CBT) threshold. At this point, they will be taxed on any player they add, so they will need to be careful if they dip into free agency.

With that being said, Pillar is not likely to receive much more than the $5.8 million salary he earned in 2019. Despite being over the tax, adding Pillar would give the Cubs more production than what they received from the center field position in 2019.

Despite playing half of their games at the hitter-friendly confines of Coors Field every year, the Colorado Rockies struggled to get meaningful production out of their outfield contingent in 2019.

That group includes Charlie Blackmon, Ian Desmond, Raimel Tapia, and David Dahl.

Dahl and Blackmon were positive contributors on offense while generating a 109 OPS+ and 123 OPS+, respectively. However, injuries continue to plague Dahl as he appeared in only 100 games last season.

In addition to those two, Tapia and Desmond received significant playing time as well. Both Tapia and Desmond were far below league average hitters as evidenced by their 74 OPS+ and 88 OPS+, respectively. That said, both players seem to hit well against the San Francisco Giants, so perhaps they would produce more if Major League Baseball scheduled more inter-division games.

Regardless, there is room for improvement. Pillar posted a 89 OPS+ in 2019, which is not a major improvement over Desmond, but Tapia received 447 plate appearances in 2019 where he was 26 percent worse than the league average hitter. The Rockies could certainly find a way to get better production from that area in 2020.

On defense, the Rockies outfielders struggled mightily with the glove in 2019:

• Desmond: -19 DRS, -11.9 UZR
• Blackmon: -8 DRS, -10.7 UZR
• Tapia: -4 DRS, -6.3 UZR
• Dahl: -11 DRS, -4.1 UZR

According to the metrics, each of the outfielders listed above was below average defensively by a pretty wide margin

Pillar is no longer the defensive wizard he was in his days with the Blue Jays, but he would be a considerable upgrade with the glove compared to the outfielders the Rockies used in 2019.

With that being said, the Rockies may have a limited payroll space for 2020 as much of their financial wherewithal is tied up to the bullpen as well as with Desmond, Blackmon, and Nolan Arenado.

Regardless, they need to get better production from their outfielders in 2020. Adding Pillar would help in achieving that end without breaking the bank or handing out a long-term commitment.

As has been rumored, Pillar has plenty of interested suitors already. While a bidding war is unlikely, Pillar should be able to use this as leverage to land a modest deal for 2020.