Veteran first baseman Brandon Belt surprisingly remains unsigned

Belt mentioned that he was told that he was several teams’ second choice, but that all of those teams ended up signing their preferred option instead. One of those teams may have actually been the Blue Jays, who signed free agent Justin Turner to be their primary DH this season.

It is worth mentioning that Belt has struggled to stay healthy for the majority of his career, with games played totals of 51, 97, 78, and 103 over the last four seasons. The durability concerns, combined with the fact that Belt was not looking to sign a Minor League contract, likely scared teams away. That being said, there is little doubt that the Nacogdoches, Texas native is a better starting option than many players currently slated into lineups around the league. Ultimately, there may just not be the right team that wants to give those reps to a veteran for a season at the expense of developing a younger player.

There is, of course, the possibility that a team suffers an injury in the first few weeks of the season and gives the 35-year-old a shot. However, the longer he goes unsigned, the more likely he will need a significant stretch of games in the Minor Leagues to get ready for live pitching. Even with his lengthy injury history, few are debating that Belt can still swing it. Time will tell if he gets a starting opportunity this season, or if his productive career may be coming to a close.