Fastball

Free Agent First Baseman Carlos Santana Has Surpassed Many Big Names in History

The 38-year-old Santana has been linked to the Seattle Marinrs, Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees this offseason.

Brady Farkas

Minnesota Twins first baseman Carlos Santana (21) celebrates after hitting a single against the Cincinnati Reds in the fourth inning at Target Field.
Minnesota Twins first baseman Carlos Santana (21) celebrates after hitting a single against the Cincinnati Reds in the fourth inning at Target Field. / Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images
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Free agent first baseman Carlos Santana has been linked to the Seattle Mariners, Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees this offseason.

He's already played for Seattle and Minnesota in his career and both teams clearly valued his on-field production as well as his in-clubhouse leadership. When he signs, Santana will be bringing a very impressive resume with himself.

Per Danny Vietti of CBS Sports:

Carlos Santana has reached base 3,107 times in his career.

He has reached base more than 80 Hall of Fame position players, including:
Scott Rolen (3,103)
Joe Mauer (3,087)
Joe DiMaggio (3,050)
Orlando Cepeda (3,041)
Gary Carter (3,008)
Mike Piazza (2,916)
Kirby Puckett (2,810)

Health and longevity are certainly part of this, as well as productivity. Santana hasn't played fewer than 131 games in any season in his career since his first one (2010).

The 38-year-old Santana just finished his 15th year in the big leagues with the Cleveland franchise, the Royals, the Philadelphia Phillies, the Mariners, the Pittsburgh Pirates, Milwaukee Brewers and Twins. He won a Gold Glove this past season with Minnesota, which was the first of his career.

Lifetime, Santana is a .242 hitter with a .354 on-base percentage. He has 324 home runs and 1,082 RBI. He's also stolen 58 career bases.

He came up as a catcher but has clearly turned into an excellent defensive first baseman.

There's been no indication yet as to when Santana will sign this offseason, but the Mariners reportedly had been hoping to get something done with him soon.

That clearly hasn't happened yet.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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