Much of the Major League Baseball offseason picture has been painted, yet it still looks incomplete.
Though we have a better idea of how the remainder of the winter—and, subsequently, the 2017 season—may play out, there are still questions left unanswered.
Let’s try to tackle what remains to be asked about this offseason and what these questions mean for players and teams alike heading into the 2017 season.
It makes sense that to improve a Major League Baseball club, a player could not have been on the team last season.
Though the Los Angeles Dodgers’ re-signings of Kenley Jansen, Justin Turner and Rich Hill were monumentally important, they didn’t improve the club from its standing in 2016.
Instead, players who signed with new teams have the chance to make an impact in their new settings. All signings are not created equal, so here are the most impactful among them. Each of them fills a need glaring for each club when the 2016 season concluded.
In keeping with the theme of the upcoming holidays, executives around MLB still have plenty of gift giving to do for their respective managers.
Multiple players—be it via the trade or free-agent markets—are available who could have an impact on division races in 2017. Where those players may land—and to an extent, who they are—still remains a mystery.
So as executives attempt to figure out how they may be able to better their clubs for the 2017 season, let’s try to answer some of the questions they’ll be asking.
This MLB offseason offered little in terms of impact pitchers. And as we look to round third base on it, any that were available are now off the market.
The big three closers—Mark Melancon (San Francisco Giants), Kenley Jansen (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Aroldis Chapman (New York Yankees)—all signed with teams. The Chicago White Sox sent starting pitcher Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox, and the Kansas City Royals shipped closer Wade Davis to the Chicago Cubs.
It has left the market for pitchers looking like August in Death Valley.
No need to look toward a higher power for rain here. All it takes is a few willing executives to reinvigorate the pitching market. Given the climate, that may be advantageous for those holding pitching talent.
Let’s take a look at some pitchers MLB teams should consider selling.
Desperation can only be born out of an impending deadline. As it pertains to sports, that boundary could be a trade deadline or the beginning of the season.
In the case of baseball and this offseason, that’s the start of spring training in 2017. But that’s only a hard deadline for those teams looking to compete this summer. Those in rebuilding mode don’t need to concern themselves with 2017, as they can make a deal when the time feels right or an enticing offer comes along.
So consider this a list of playoff contenders—or those, at least, that can compete—that need to become more active as we enter the final stages of the offseason.
The week after baseball’s winter meetings often represents a calm in the offseason. Having engaged in unrelenting trade and free-agent discussions, teams step back and evaluate their roster to date.
But that doesn’t mean we should stop asking questions.
Several of the moves have prompted forward-looking thoughts about the upcoming season. Sure, there’s still work to be done, players to be signed and trades to be worked out.
And, of course, that means these answers can drastically change. But for now, let’s see where baseball stands as the offseason heads toward its latter half.
Deals are made in MLB—both trades and free-agent signings—to make a team better. That’s obvious. But it’s worth saying nonetheless because that doesn’t always end up being the case.
Once games begin, some moves seem like bargains. Others become head-scratchers, and then some are just foolhardy.
The final verdict on all of these deals won’t be reached until the end of the 2017 season at least. But waiting for October is no fun. Let’s take a look at how all the major moves of this MLB offseason break down right now.
Winter isn’t only a time for trades and free-agent signings but a chance for speculation.
Attention goes to those who write the biggest checks or complete the most notable deals. Teams can win by spending money or selling off prospects. It’s not always a guarantee, though.
Smaller deals are made, and smaller-market teams receive less attention—and sometimes, a combination of the two pays the biggest dividends in an upcoming season.
They just don’t get noticed until the season starts, if not later.
Let’s change that by recognizing the unrecognized—under-the-radar teams that have had strong offseasons.
Major League Baseball’s hot stove was white-hot this week with winter meetings sparking a flurry of franchise-changing deals.
The Chicago White Sox were at the center of it all, dealing starting pitcher Chris Sale and outfielder Adam Eaton in trades that altered the dynamic of each of the franchises involved.
It all gave us a new set of questions to answer concerning the 2017 season and beyond. Who are contenders? Who are pretenders? Which teams were able to secure their futures?
Like a cotton candy maker, baseball’s winter meetings tend to spit out anything that sticks.
Sure, deals are made like the one that saw Chris Sale traded to the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday. But speculation, more than anything, is the product of the meetings.
It’s tough to determine which of the hottest thoughts, rumors and conjecture might end up being true, but we’ll give it a try and play or fiction with what has emerged thus far from baseball’s annual conclave.