Trot Nixon, OF, CLE
SG Ranking
Mixed League (NR)
AL Only (178)
Nixon signed a one-year, $3 million contract to join the Indians where he is expected to serve as the team's right fielder against right-handed pitching. He struggled in the second half of 2006 as he dealt with various injuries (.171-2-9 with .530 OPS), but he posted a solid first half (.311-6-43 with .870 OPS).  Cleveland GM Mark Shapiro said recently that Nixon will likely bat second against right-handers so he will be in a good spot as far as that goes—right in front of the likes of Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez.

Javy Lopez, C, COL
SG Ranking
Mixed League (NR)
NL Only (225)
Lopez, 36, never lived up to his free agent salary in Baltimore -- his  2006 numbers (.265-8-31 with .727 OPS in 76 games) for the O's were palatable, but he was brutal in the 18 games he played for the Red Sox (.190-0-4 with .485 OPS). He is expected to compete with Yorvit Torrealba and Chris Iannetta for the two spots on the Colorado roster. The 23-year-old Iannetta is perhaps the most intriguing of the group as he hit .336-14-48 with 55K/48BB in 91 games combined between Double-A Tulsa and Triple-A Colorado Springs before hitting .260-2-10 with .759 OPS in 21 games for the Rockies late last season. Lopez could have some value in NL-only leagues. The one-year, $750,000 contract Lopez signed with Colorado is not guaranteed so they will have no problem dumping him if Iannetta and Torrealba clearly outperform him this spring.

Jose Vidro, 2B, SEA
SG Ranking
Mixed League (245)
AL Only (125)
Seattle's decision to acquire Vidro from the Nationals is somewhat puzzling considering they will have to pay him $12 million over the next two years. Vidro has played in just 213 games over the past two seasons and has averaged .284-7-40 over that span. He has also seen his OPS drop in each of the past three seasons from .866 in 2003 to last season's .744 mark. The Mariners have Ben Broussard on the hook for $3.55 million this season and though he struggled in 56 games with the '06 Mariners (.238-8-17), he showed some promise in Cleveland. It seems that Seattle's plan is to use Vidro as their primary designated hitter with Broussard as potential trade bait entering spring training.

Jay Payton, OF, BAL
SG Ranking
Mixed League (189)
AL Only (100)
Payton signed a two-year, $9.5 million contract with Baltimore in December thinking he was going to have a starting spot in the outfield. Then the Orioles agreed to a three-year, $20 million pact with Aubrey Huff. The addition of the left-handed Huff left Payton's role less secure. At this point, it appears that the Orioles will go with the outfield of Corey Patterson, Nick Markakis, and Aubrey Huff leaving veteran Jay Gibbons to be the primary designated hitter. Huff has experience at first base and Kevin Millar's better days are behind him. It's possible the coaching staff could convert  Millar to more of a role player using Huff at first base  -- which in turn would leave Payton as the starting left fielder. The "Payton Place " is worth watching for AL-only owners.

Alex Gonzalez, SS, CIN
SG Ranking
Mixed League (NR)
NL Only (157)
After mashing 23 HR in 2004, Gonzalez has managed to hit just 14 HR over his past two seasons (241 games). The opportunity to play half his games at Great American Ball Park should be of some assistance in that department. The Reds are looking for Gonzalez to solidify the middle defense and won't  be concerned  about his career .246 batting average... but fantasy owners should.

Chris Snelling, OF, WSH
SG Ranking
Mixed League (NR)
NL Only (NR)
Snelling, 25, has been slowed by injuries over the past few years, but he was once a highly regarded prospect. He is expected to compete with fellow left-handed hitters Ryan Church and Kory Casto for a job in left field this spring. Church has been mentioned in trade rumors so it is possible that he will be out of the picture by spring training. Alex Escobar is waiting in the wings, but he probably will not be sufficiently recovered from surgery performed last September on his right shoulder (torn labrum) to resume playing the outfield until mid-March at the earliest. Mike Restovich is another right-handed hitting corner outfielder who will be battling for a job this spring, most likely as a platoon partner for whoever wins the left field job. All things considered, Snelling has a decent chance to be the primary left fielder for the Nationals with a strong spring so he could have some value in NL-only leagues.

Aaron Boone, 3B, FLA
SG Ranking
Mixed League (NR)
NL Only (200)
Boone is expected to serve as the right-handed hitting platoon partner with Mike Jacobs. Boone didn't have much success in 104 games with Cleveland last season (.251-7-46-50-5 with .684 OPS), but did bat .280 with 3 HR, 13 RBI, and .789 OPS against left-handed pitching leaving him with little value outside of deep NL-only formats.

Mark Loretta, 2B, HOU
SG Ranking
Mixed League (225)
NL Only (107)
Loretta has been a disappointment following the productive seasons of 2003 and 2004 -- in which he averaged .305-15-74-91-5 in 154 games per season. Since then he has averaged .283-4-49-65-6 in 130 games annually. Chances are, the 35-year-old will never regain the level of success he enjoyed in '03 and '04, but he could see an offensive boost with the move to the band box in Houston. He will likely just be a part-time player this season barring an injury to one of the Houston infielders. Loretta should be forecasted to see around 300 at-bats in 2007.

Sammy Sosa, OF, TEX
SG Ranking
Mixed League (NR)
AL Only (NR)
The contract Sosa signed with the Rangers is a minor league deal with an invite to spring training. If he makes the team, he will be guaranteed $500,000, but it is a contract heavily lined with incentives. That alone should tell you something about where Sosa is at this point in his career. The 38-year-old did not play in 2006 after hitting just .221-14-45 with .671 OPS in 102 games for Baltimore in 2005. Keep an eye on him this spring, but don't expect him to regains his former fantasy value, if any at all.

Craig Counsell, INF, MIL
SG Ranking
Mixed League (NR)
NL Only (201)
The veteran infielder surprised some by signing a two-year, $6 million contract in late November to become a utility-man with Milwaukee. Counsell is nothing more than insurance for Rickie Weeks, J.J. Hardy, and Corey Koskie, but as a versatile middle infielder will have value in deep NL-only leagues.

Royce Clayton, SS, TOR
SG Ranking
Mixed League (NR)
AL Only (151)
Clayton enters spring training as the slight favorite to claim Toronto's shortstop job after signing a one-year, $1.5 million contract in late November. He is expected to compete with John McDonald and Jason Smith for the job. One wonders why Toronto GM J.P. Ricciardi opted to sign the 37-year-old Clayton to such a deal considering his woeful '06 season (.258-2-40 with .648 OPS) with the Reds. Managers in deep AL-only leagues are the only group who should highlight Clayton as a fantasy option in '07.

Mike Lieberthal, C, LAD
SG Ranking
Mixed League (NR)
NL Only (244)
Lieberthal signed a one-year, $1.25 million deal to serve as Russell Martin's backup in 2007. Injuries limited the 35-year-old to just 209 at-bats last season, but he was still able to offer solid production when healthy (.273-9-36). Barring injury to Martin, Lieberthal figures to have very little in the way of fantasy value.