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The winter meetings always provide a good deal of excitement around the MLB community, and this year has been no different, with several major transactions occurring.

This will be the first time we’ve updated our power rankings since the conclusion of the regular season, so here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Offseason rankings are not meant to be a prediction for the year ahead. Instead, they are a look at how teams would stack up with the rosters they have if the season started today.

• These rankings will be updated several more times between now and the start of the 2017 campaign, so if your favorite club is lower than you’d like, there’s still time.

• A perfect example of this is the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have a number of holes to fill and rank low as a result. They’ll climb as the offseason progresses and they fill said holes.

Included for each team is a look at notable offseason additions, a breakdown of the club’s offseason activities, remaining needs and a preliminary 25-man roster.

Note: Players listed in bold on projected rosters indicate newcomers. Players listed in italics among notable additions indicate they are not on the 40-man roster. An (R) next to a player indicates that his rookie status is intact.

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After a relatively quiet first day at the winter meetings, Tuesday afternoon was anything but, as we saw one of the biggest blockbuster trades in recent memory.

The Chicago White Sox finally found an offer to their liking for ace Chris Sale, shipping him to Boston in exchange for a package of four prospects headlined by infielder Yoan Moncada and right-hander Michael Kopech.

That wasn’t all the Red Sox accomplished, though, as they also swung a trade to acquire setup man Tyler Thornburg from the Milwaukee Brewers and signed first baseman Mitch Moreland to a one-year deal, per Roster Resource.

There were a handful of other notable signings as well, with Wilson Ramos, Carlos Gomez and Fernando Rodney all finding new homes. As the free-agent market continues to dwindle, perhaps it will further fan the flames on the trade market.

What does Day 3 of the meetings have in store?

Keep it right here for all the latest rumors, news and transactions in one convenient tracker.

Done Deals

Wednesday: Miami Marlins sign LHP Jeff Locke to a one-year, ~$3 million deal, per Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball.

Wednesday: Colorado Rockies sign OF Ian Desmond to a five-year, $70 million deal, according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.

Wednesday: Chicago Cubs acquire RP Wade Davis from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for OF Jorge Soler, according to Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com.

Wednesday: Miami Marlins re-sign RHP Dustin McGowan to a one-year deal, per Heyman.

Wednesday: Miami Marlins sign C A.J. Ellis to a one-year, $2.5 million deal, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.

Wednesday: Washington Nationals acquire CF Adam Eaton from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for RHP Lucas Giolito, RHP Reynaldo Lopez and RHP Dane Dunning, per Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

It was a quiet first day at the annual MLB winter meetings in terms of deals getting done, but there was no shortage of intriguing rumors.

Teams appear ready to make a push to acquire veteran talent from a Kansas City Royals club looking to trim salary, and a crowded outfield could keep the New York Mets busy.

With such a limited free-agent market that has already seen a number of top-tier names signed, the trade scene figures to be as busy as ever this week.

So with that in mind, what follows is a look at five potential trade ideas, based on the latest rumors from around the league.

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Between the new collective bargaining agreement being hammered out, a number of notable free agents already signing and a handful of significant trades, it’s been a busy first month of the MLB offseason.

Now the hot stove is ready to erupt as the MLB world converges on National Harbor, Maryland, for the annual winter meetings—a four-day event that will run from Monday, Dec. 5, until Thursday, Dec. 8.

A wholly underwhelming free-agent market that has already seen a number of notable dominoes fall should result in more activity than normal on the trade market, leaving this year’s meetings with a trade-deadline-type feel.

As Day 1 of the meetings progresses, we’ll have all the pertinent rumors, news and transactions right here in one convenient tracker.

Check back early and often for all the latest from this year’s winter meetings.

Done Deals

Monday: Toronto Blue Jays sign IF/OF Steve Pearce for two years, $12.5 million, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.

Monday: San Francisco Giants sign RP Mark Melancon for four years, $62 million, per Buster Olney of ESPN and Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

Monday: Los Angeles Dodgers re-sign SP Rich Hill for three years, $48 million, reports Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball.

Monday: Philadelphia Phillies sign RP Joaquin Benoit for one year, $7.5 million, according to Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

While there have been a few significant moves already in MLB since the World Series wrapped up roughly a month ago, things generally don’t get going until the annual winter meetings, which are set for Dec. 4-8 in National Harbor, Maryland.

There figures to be no shortage of blockbuster trades and notable free-agent signings during the upcoming event, but before that happens, let’s make some predictions.

What follows is a look at the top 25 free agents and trade targets on the market with predictions from six of our top MLB writers on where they will land.

These six writers made up our panel of prognosticators:

• Seth Gruen, National MLB Columnist
• Danny Knobler, MLB Lead Writer
• Joel Reuter, National MLB Columnist
• Zachary Rymer, MLB Lead Writer
• Jacob Shafer, National MLB Columnist
• Rick Weiner, National MLB Columnist

Having six writers weigh in gave us plenty of different opinions, and in the end we only had two consensus predictions among the 25 players.

It will be fun to look back in a few months to see who got the most picks right, but for now, here’s our best guess at how this year’s free-agent and trade markets will unfold this winter.

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The MLB regular season is long over and the Arizona Fall League recently wrapped up, but there’s still baseball being played in the Caribbean as a number of prospects and fringe veterans are working hard in the various winter leagues.

The Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Puerto Rico and Mexico all play host to competitive winter leagues, with the winners from those four leagues and the Cuban national team converging for the annual Caribbean Series at the beginning of February.

These winter leagues have been going strong since late October, so let’s check in on how some of the league’s top prospects are faring in 2016 winter ball.

We’ve broken things down by position, highlighting the top two or three guys based not only on production in winter ball but on their current prospect standings.

Note: All prospect rankings courtesy of MLB.com’s Prospect Watch.

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With the winter meetings set to kick off next week (barring a work stoppage) and myriad action already taking place this offseason, the MLB offseason is undoubtedly in full swing with the month of December now just around the corner.

A number of teams have already made significant additions to better position themselves for the season ahead, but all 30 clubs still have at least one glaring hole to fill between now and the start of spring training.

So with that in mind, what follows is a look at one realistic free-agent signing that each team could make to fix the biggest remaining issue on the roster.

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Generally speaking, the annual winter meetings are when the MLB offseason really takes off.

While we’ve already seen a handful of notable free-agent signings and a few significant trades, there’s still a lot of roster shuffling to be done between now and the start of spring training.

That wheeling and dealing will kick into high gear next week, as all 30 teams will converge on National Harbor, Maryland, from Dec. 4-8 for four days of excitement.

With an incredibly weak pitching market, this year’s meetings in particular could have a feel similar to the days leading up to the trade deadline when the rumor mill was buzzing and more than a few trades come to fruition.

So, one week out, what follows are some quick predictions on what this year’s winter meetings might bring.

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The focus of MLB offseason conversations is generally on what players teams could potentially add to fill areas of need, but often times the answer is already in-house.

A team’s top prospects, at least the ones on the cusp of reaching the majors, can often make a bigger impact than anyone the team might acquire during the offseason.

Take the Detroit Tigers for example.

Last winter, Jordan Zimmermann and Mike Pelfrey were signed in an effort to bolster the starting rotation.

However, it was rookie Michael Fulmer who wound up being the biggest difference-maker on the pitching side of things as he provided front-line production alongside Justin Verlander and easily out-performed both Zimmermann and Pelfrey.

Prospects are not always afforded a clear path to playing time as teams are wary of relying on unproven talent, but there are a handful of prospects that will find themselves in a better position once the offseason comes to a close.

Whether it’s the departure of a key free agent or a trade that could result in a roster shakeup, the following 10 prospects stand to benefit most from the offseason frenzy.

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With the MLB offseason in full swing, the hot stove seemingly provides us with a handful of new rumors to discuss on a daily basis.

At this point in the offseason, prior to the winter meetings, the bulk of the rumors revolve around players who could potentially be available on the trade market as opposed to free agents and where they might wind up signing.

That will all change in a little over a week when the league converges on National Harbor, Maryland, for the annual four-day circus that is the winter meetings. But for now, we have plenty to discuss from the early stages of the offseason.

All of that said, what follows is a look at one notable rumor currently out there for each MLB team and my odds on whether that rumor will turn out to be true (in a few cases, the most notable speculation will be covered).

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