State of play: NL outfielders

Taking a look at which NL teams will need to upgrade their outfield this offseason.

Nov 10, 2013, 2:00 PM UTC

Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

The free-agent outfield market includes some of the top available players, and four outfielders have received qualifying offers this offseason. These players will be looking for big paydays this winter from teams with major holes in their outfield.

Many NL teams already appear to have their outfield set for next season, but a few are still searching for improvements. The current state of NL outfielders is listed below, with players slotted at the position they would likely field if their respective teams made zero changes during the offseason.

Team	LF	CF	RF	Bench	Comments
Atlanta Braves	Justin Upton	B.J. Upton	Jason Heyward	Jordan Schafer	The elder Upton brother (B.J.) had a disastrous season and will need to rebound next year. Atlanta still owes him $62.8 million over the next four years.
Miami Marlins	Christian Yelich	Marcell Ozuna	Giancarlo Stanton	Justin Ruggiano	Stanton, 24, could be the oldest starting OF in Miami next season. If Yelich/Ozuna develop as hoped, this could be the strength of the lineup.
New York Mets	Eric Young	Juan Lagares	Lucas Duda	Kirk Nieuwenhuis	The Mets will almost certainly upgrade this position in free agency since Duda is a beter fit at first base. Lagares is a fantastic defender, while Young swiped 38 bags in 2013.
Philadelphia Phillies	Domonic Brown	Ben Revere	John Mayberry	Darin Ruf	Brown tapped into some of his potential last season, slugging 27 homers. The Phillies are also looking for an upgrade in RF.
Washington Nationals	Bryce Harper	Denard Span	Jayson Werth	Tyler Moore	The Nationals' starting OF combined for a solid 11.9 fWAR in 2013. Span is rumored to be on the trade block.
Chicago Cubs	Ryan Sweeney	Junior Lake	Nate Schierholtz	Brian Bogusevic	Chicago may trade Schierholtz next season, especially if Jorge Soler makes his debut. Lake and Sweeney can both handle center.
Cincinnati Reds	Ryan Ludwick	Billy Hamilton	Jay Bruce	Chris Heisey	Many will be interested to see if Hamilton can reach base enough in the majors next season to take advantage of his impressive speed. The Reds will miss Shin-Soo Choo's production.
Milwaukee Brewers	Ryan Braun	Carlos Gomez	Norichika Aoki	Khris Davis	Braun will return to the field after receiving a 65-game suspension that finished his 2013. Jonathan Lucroy may see some playing time in the OF next year.
Pittsburgh Pirates	Starling Marte	Andrew McCutchen	Jose Tabata	Travis Snider	Pittsburgh should be able to replace Marlon Byrd internally, but could choose to trade Tabata if they re-sign Byrd. McCutchen led the NL in 2013 with 8.2 fWAR.
St. Louis Cardinals	Matt Holliday	Jon Jay	Allen Craig	Oscar Taveras	The Cardinals should survive the potential loss of Beltran. Taveras could force his way into the lineup, which could make Jay or 1B Matt Adams expendable (Craig would move back to first).
Arizona Diamondbacks	Adam Eaton	A.J. Pollock	Gerardo Parra	Cody Ross	Arizona could have one of the top defensive outfields, but may look for an offensive upgrade this offseason. Martin Prado may also spend some time in LF.
Colorado Rockies	Carlos Gonzalez	Dexter Fowler	Charlie Blackmon	Corey Dickerson	Michael Cuddyer is slated to replace Todd Helton at first, but could move back to right field if Colorado finds another option at first. Wilin Rosario may also spend time in the OF.
Los Angeles Dodgers	Carl Crawford	Matt Kemp	Yasiel Puig	Andre Ethier	One of the Dodgers' veterans seems likely to have a new home next season. Crawford, Kemp and Ethier are scheduled to make a combined $56.75 million in 2014.
San Diego Padres	Carlos Quentin	Cameron Maybin	Will Venable	Chris Denorfia	Maybin and Quentin will both look to bounce back after injury-plagued seasons. Kyle Blanks and Jesus Guzman could also see playing time in San Diego next year.
San Francisco Giants	Gregor Blanco	Angel Pagan	Hunter Pence	Juan Perez	The Giants will almost certainly sign or trade for a left fielder; Blanco is better served as a fourth outfielder. Brandon Belt could also man left field if San Francisco upgrades first base.