The best teams for 10 hot MLB free agents

Nine teams are interested, including three mystery teams.

Oh, sorry. Was just getting ready for the spiel and the spin or — in some rare cases — the truth. The free agent market is like the World Series…of Poker. Bluffing is as much a part of negotiations as no-trade clauses.

I can’t tell you how many times I have wanted to play baseball overlord during this process — short circuit the misdirection and outright lies — and simply put the players in what feels like the right place.

So I decided to try with 10 players. This does not mean I expect these players to end up there. Simply that I think the players fit what the teams need and I believe the teams have the resources to get it done:

Yasmany Tomas, Mets

The Mets have shown an aversion for spending on players they know a lot more about than Tomas, who could cost $100 million or more on a six- or seven-year deal. But here is the question I would ask: Are the Mets ever getting in the game or not?

The Phillies — supposedly rebuilding — are “all over him,” in the words of an executive whose team is scouting the Cuban.

The recent track record of righty power hitters off the island — Yoenis Cespedes, Yasiel Puig, Jose Abreu — has been excellent.

One scout who watched a power display during a workout likened Tomas to, gulp, Albert Belle.

Look, one of these Cuban signings is going to be horrendous, a complete waste of money.

And with the Mets’ run of fortune maybe it would be them. But the signing instantly would energize the fan base. It would show that ownership is, indeed, willing to spend when the time is right. There is risk.

But think of the reward: If Tomas is Belle-ish, the Mets have signed a 24-year-old (on Nov. 14) cleanup hitter who did not cost a compensation draft pick on an undervalued deal to play a position of need (corner outfield).

Are the Mets in the game or not?

Brett Anderson, Yankees

With CC Sabathia, Masahiro Tanaka and Ivan Nova all injury mysteries for next year, the last thing the Yanks need is a pitcher who can’t get on the mound.

And I would not sign Anderson rather than Brandon McCarthy. Sign both. The Yanks should use their financial muscle to give Anderson the best one-year, incentive-laden deal.

Look, for the 2015 Yankees to be contenders they are going to need many dominoes to fall just right. So why not add one more that provides such a big upside?

It is possible Anderson has nothing left — he was last good for a full season in 2009. But he only turns 27 in February. He is left-handed. It feels like a worthwhile one-year gamble.

Maybe the dominoes fall just right and Tanaka, Sabathia, Nova, Michael Pineda, Anderson, McCarthy, Shane Greene and Luis Severino tag-team 162 games in a high-end way.

Max Scherzer, Brewers

Under owner Mark Attanasio, the Brewers are a sneaky aggressive team. They obtained CC Sabathia at the 2008 trade deadline, and they were stealthily pursuing David Price last July.

Their need for a No. 1 starter who would line up mid-rotation types such as Yovani Gallardo, Matt Garza and Kyle Lohse more properly is overt.

They have just one significant long-term obligation, to Ryan Braun, and team-friendly deals to star-level players Carlos Gomez and Jonathan Lucroy. That makes investing big on a difference maker possible.

They have a win-now nucleus but aren’t going to do that without an ace. Also, Milwaukee probably can see the nearby and fellow NL Central Cubs have hired manager Joe Maddon and are talking about adding one or two aces of their own to go with their core of young standout hitting prospects.

With St. Louis and Pittsburgh already strong in the division, Milwaukee has some pressure to keep up.

Victor Martinez, Mariners

It is rare that players with nine-figure contracts play to their pay. The Mariners had two of them — Robinson Cano and Felix Hernandez — live up to the dollars last year, yet missed the playoffs, mainly because their offense, particularly from the right side, was atrocious. They simply cannot waste more of Cano and Hernandez’s prime.

Seattle had the worst OPS vs. lefty pitching (.636) in the AL. Six of the seven players who took the Mariners’ most at-bats were lefties.

Perhaps July acquisition Austin Jackson will help more in 2015. But the Mariners no longer can add the likes of Corey Hart, Chris Denorfia and Kendrys Morales and think that is enough.

They need a big bat to hit behind Cano. V-Mart, who has protected Miguel Cabrera, is the man. He is a switch-hitter, but his 1.123 OPS vs. southpaws led the majors (minimum 100 plate appearances), and his 12 homers were the second most off lefties.

There will be a lot of talk about putting Nelson Cruz’s righty bat here. But his defense could be a problem in spacious Safeco. Martinez offers a first base/DH alternative that fits better.

Pablo Sandoval, Tigers

Now that we have taken Scherzer and V-Mart off Detroit, someone must be added because the Tigers still are a win-now team.

The Tigers had the second-fewest homers by lefties last year with Martinez. Sandoval is not a huge power threat, but his switch-hitting bat provides some replacement for Martinez.

He plays third base well and would allow Detroit to move current third baseman Nick Castellanos to left field — or the trade market.

Andrew Miller, Tigers

Yes, more Motown. The Tigers matched Boston’s asking price on July 31 and thought they had Miller in a trade.

Then Baltimore broke and agreed to deal well-regarded pitching prospect Eduardo Rodriguez, Miller wound up an Oriole and he became a key component in Baltimore eliminating Detroit in the Division Series.

The Tigers’ late-game needs remain and Miller is again available. Do the math.

Melky Cabrera, Royals

Kansas City was willing to throw more than the three years at $45 million the Yanks gave to Carlos Beltran last offseason (plus a fourth-year option the Yanks never offered) to reunite with its former star.

The Royals’ right field needs remain. They had Cabrera in 2011 and liked him a great deal and, as the Beltran pursuit revealed, they are willing to spend on this spot.

Adam LaRoche, Padres

San Diego produced one of the worst offenses in history last year. Big Petco Park wears on the Padres lineup even more than Citi Field did with the Mets.

But LaRoche has a 1.000 OPS in 39 games at Petco — the best by anyone with at least 125 plate appearances.

He hit 26 homers last year in Washington, and if you take the distances and overlay them on Petco’s dimensions, every one of the 26 still would have been a homer.

The lefty first baseman has at least 20 homers in nine of the last 10 seasons. So he will have suitors — the Marlins, for example, are expected to be interested.

Asdrúbal Cabrera, Blue Jays

The Jays believe Jose Reyes wears down playing on their artificial surface and it negatively impacted his defense, in particular. But they have had poor backup options.

Cabrera gives them a chance to solve two issues. He can be signed to play second base but be a viable backup when Reyes needs a day off or has one of his familiar injuries.

James Shields, White Sox

Several executives said they see the White Sox as an under-the-radar team ready to spend.

Chicago has team-friendly deals with arguably its three best players — Jose Abreu, Chris Sale and Jose Quintana — which frees up dollars.

A front three of Sale, Shields and Quintana would give the White Sox a dynamic lefty/righty/lefty trio to try to be a contender again.