In an ideal world, the best free agent at each position would be the first to sign, inking a record-breaking contract that sets the tone for the rest of his position mates.

Obviously, that rarely happens. In fact, it's often quite the opposite, with the top free agents getting their best offers later in the process.

I call these head-of-class guys -- the players I think will be the highest-paid at their positions -- the "primary" free agents. Then comes the next level, the "secondary" free agents, who also have a hand in setting the market for the rest of their positions.

Below are the trendsetters at each position, both the primary and the secondary players. These are the players who will set the market, in terms of years and dollars, for the rest of the free-agent class.

Starting pitchers

Primary: Rich Hill, LHP

Secondary: Jason Hammel, RHP, and Ivan Nova, RHP

Hill is going to set the market for starting pitchers, and because he's clearly the best starter available, he'll do better than similar starting pitchers a year ago in terms of years and dollars. Despite being 36, he'll likely get a third year on an upcoming deal, something John Lackey wasn't able to get last year.