Kuzul

The World Baseball Classic is back—or it will be this spring, with the fourth installment of the international baseball tournament scheduled to kick off on Mar. 6 and the championship game slated for Mar. 22 at Dodger Stadium.

The United States team enters the upcoming tournament still searching for its first World Baseball Classic title.

In fact, it has yet to finish higher than fourth, with that result coming back in 2009. It also has an eighth-place finish in 2006 and a sixth-place finish in 2013 to its credit.

Japan claimed the first two WBC titles, with the Dominican Republic besting Puerto Rico last time around to give the tournament a new defending champion.

So what will it take for the U.S. team to come out on top?

Convincing more of the country’s elite-level talent to participate would be a good first step.

That strategy is already off to a rocky start, though, as Mike Trout and Bryce Harper were both left off the preliminary 50-man roster and appear unlikely to participate, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

However, there’s still a wealth of talent that could find its way onto the Team USA roster, and what follows is one attempt at assembling a U.S. team capable of winning it all.

Note: The 2013 U.S. team featured 15 pitchers (four starters and 11 relievers) and 13 position players (three catchers, six infielders and four outfielders). While those roster parameters are not a requirement, they were used as a blueprint in the following exercise.

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The early stages of the MLB offseason are generally filled with speculation as to where the top free agents might sign and rumors as to which players are expected to be available on the trade market.

This offseason has been no exception, and as we close in on the winter meetings and some legitimate action on both fronts, the influx of rumors should only increase.

With that in mind, what follows is a look at each team’s best trade asset for the offseason.

While players did not necessarily need to have been named in concrete trade rumors to be included on the following list—and some of these are speculative—they did need to have realistic chances of being traded.

In other words, you won’t see guys like Kris Bryant, Mike Trout and Clayton Kershaw on the following list.

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This year’s MLB offseason is shaping up to be a busy one on the trade market as teams turn their attention to potential blockbuster deals to offset one of the weakest free-agent markets in recent memory.

That should lead to plenty of talks of potential blockbuster deals during this year’s winter meetings, which will take place from Dec. 4-8 in National Harbor, Maryland.

Chicago White Sox ace Chris Sale will be a special case, as acquiring him will mean giving up young talent that would be otherwise untouchable.

It will still take significant prospect talent to swing a deal for the likes of Jose Quintana (CWS), Chris Archer (TB) and Sonny Gray (OAK), among others who could be shopped.

With that in mind, what follows is a look at the prospects who could be used as linchpins in a winter blockbuster deal.

However, first we needed to narrow down which teams will be in a position to potentially pull off such a trade.

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Superstar-caliber players generally dominate headlines each MLB offseason.

They will be agreeing to big-money deals and are often viewed as the missing piece that could push a team over the top in its pursuit of a championship.

However, scouring the market for bargains and taking a flier on a potential bounce-back candidate can be just as important in building a successful contender.

Just look at last season, when guys like Ian Desmond (TEX), Mike Napoli (CLE), Chris Carter (MIL), Matt Joyce (PIT), David Freese (PIT), Fernando Rodney (SD), Neftali Feliz (PIT), Brandon Kintzler (MIN) and Carlos Torres (MIL) all signed modest, one-year deals after disappointing 2015 seasons, only to emerge as key contributors for their respective clubs.

Meanwhile, the trade market also provided bounce-back or breakout gems, led by Jean Segura (ARI), Jonathan Villar (MIL) and Drew Pomeranz (SD).

With that in mind, what follows is a look at the 10 most intriguing bounce-back candidates on the offseason market, ranked based on upside and potential impact.

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All 30 MLB teams have holes to fill this offseason, but for teams set to lose one of the market’s marquee free agents, those holes are a bit more glaring.

How will the Toronto Blue Jays replace Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista, a duo that has been among the most dangerous in all of baseball over the past several seasons?

The Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals—all teams expected to be contenders once again in 2017—are set to lose their respective closers. Will we see a shuffling of relief aces among those teams, or will someone else swoop in and shake things up?

The Baltimore Orioles let the AL home run leader walk two years ago when Nelson Cruz signed with the Seattle Mariners. Will they do the same with Mark Trumbo?

There is no shortage of questions surrounding what teams will do in the aftermath of losing a top-tier free agent.

With that in mind, ahead is a look at the options teams have—both in-house and on the free-agent and trade markets—for filling the voids left behind by the free-agent market’s top 15 players.

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The winter meetings are just a few short weeks away as the MLB offseason figures to kick into full swing during the annual league-wide congregation that will take place this year from Dec. 4-8 in National Harbor, Maryland.

Every offseason brings a unique crop of free agents and trade targets, but this winter in particular will be a unique one thanks to a barren starting pitching market.

For pitching-needy teams, the trade market will be the place to go, and that could give this year’s meetings a feeling similar to the July trade deadline when teams are wheeling and dealing.

So as teams weigh their options ahead over the coming weeks, they will have some tough decisions to make and some risky propositions to consider.

That’s what we’ll focus on here: one risky move that each MLB team should consider making.

In many cases, it’s potentially trading a key player, going back to the idea that the trade market will be busier than in most years. Other decisions include targeting a free agent, addressing an extension candidate and potentially clearing a path for a top prospect.

We’ve laid out the potential benefits of making each move, as well as why it’s a risk.

So with that, let’s begin.

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The 2016 MLB Rookie of the Year awards were handed out Monday night, making this the perfect time to look ahead to who might make up next year’s crop of candidates for the honor.

Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager was a unanimous selection in the National League, while Detroit Tigers pitcher Michael Fulmer took home the American League award, per BBWAA.com.

So who’s next?

Being an early Rookie of the Year candidate is as much about opportunity as it is about talent and upside.

First baseman Josh Bell (PIT), left fielder Andrew Benintendi (BOS), starting pitcher Tyler Glasnow (PIT), right fielder Aaron Judge (NYY), center fielder Manuel Margot (SD), right fielder Hunter Renfroe (SD), starting pitcher Alex Reyes (STL), shortstop Dansby Swanson (ATL) and first baseman Dan Vogelbach (SEA) are among the rookies who appear to have a clear path to significant playing time in 2017.

They’re by no means the only candidates, though.

As we saw this past season, it only took two months of action for New York Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez to earn a place among the AL finalists.

With all of that in mind, what follows are some early odds on the top prospects who will battle for Rookie of the Year honors in 2017.

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The 2016-17 MLB offseason is already picking up steam here midway through the month of November, with a number of significant moves already made, as detailed by Spotrac.

Kendrys Morales signed with the Toronto Blue Jays, veteran starters Bartolo Colon and R.A. Dickey both joined the Atlanta Braves on one-year deals, and Jesse Chavez will get a chance to start after agreeing to terms with the Los Angeles Angels.

On the trade market, Howie Kendrick was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies, and the Dodgers also flipped Carlos Ruiz to the Seattle Mariners for left-hander Vidal Nuno.

While it’s been a busy start to the offseason, there is still a ton to be sorted out between now and the start of spring training, and the rumor mill is already in full swing.

With that in mind, here is a look at five early rumors that have a good chance of coming to fruition in the days and weeks to come.

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Every MLB team has a different set of goals and a different path it will follow this offseason to improve heading into 2017, but one thing is for sure: Everyone has work to do.

Whether it is adding a player to upgrade a specific area of weakness, re-signing a key player in free agency, selling high on a trade chip or extending an in-house player, there is lots to be done before the start of spring training. 

With that in mind, here is a look at all 30 MLB teams’ blueprint to an “A” grade this offseason—a quick rundown of what every team needs to accomplish this winter to be in the best possible position heading into next season.

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The dominoes generally don’t start falling on the MLB offseason until the winter meetings roll around, but the rumor mill is already in full swing.

Offseason markets are so intertwined that one signing can often trigger a trickle-down effect and spark a flurry of activity with teams scrambling to lock down plan B after missing out on plan A.

For now, all we have is a spattering of rumors from around the MLB community to hold us over until the hot stove really heats up a month or so from now.

With that in mind, here’s a look at the early clues on where the top 10 free agents could wind up signing.

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