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The baseball offseason is an exciting time for fans of strategy. This is the time of year when every baseball front office is trying to outsmart the others, and that can make for a very unique and entertaining kind of theater. This year promises to be especially interesting, because a large number of front offices have seen a lot of turnover in recent months. That means that a bunch of new executives will be trying to make their marks by winning trades and inking marquee players to big-time deals. Here are five front offices that we expect to be especially active this offseason.
Boston Red Sox
This is Dave Dombrowksi’s ship now, and he’s making some changes. Boston is expected to make a huge push for an ace pitcher, and they’ve already made a big splash by landing star closer Craig Kimbrel. The Kimbrel trade shows that Dombrowksi isn’t afraid to ship prospects out for proven winners, and there are still players left on Boston’s wish list. The Red Sox claim they’re done with big-time trades this offseason, but they’ll certainly listen if pitching-rich teams like the Mets come looking for outfielders – as New York already has, according to some reports. Plus, Boston is bound to be a big player on the free agent market as they hunt for that aforementioned stud pitcher.
Los Angeles Dodgers
It’s win-now time for the Dodgers, and they have the money to get it done. Unlike a couple of the other teams on this list, the Dodgers’ didn’t make huge changes to their front office recently, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t looking to make a splash. In Andrew Friedman’s first offseason, he made some huge moves and changed the look of the Dodgers all around the diamond. This season, he may do more of the same. At the very least, expect the Dodgers to make a huge push to re-sign ace pitcher Zack Greinke and then get involved in some position player upgrades, possibly in the outfield.
Seattle Mariners
It should be no surprise that the Mariners are on this list – their six-player deal with the Tampa Bay Rays was the first trade of the offseason. They’ve also already re-signed a couple of guys, and the Mariners are far from done. New Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto is in his first offseason with the club, and he’s determined to change the team and the culture in Seattle. DiPoto’s time with the Los Angeles Angels came to frustrating end when he butted heads with the team’s manager and old-school ways, and he’s ready to flex his new freedom in Seattle. Besides, it’s rebuilding and retooling time for the Mariners. Expect them to really shake things up.
Toronto Blue Jays
The Blue Jays are in a weird spot. They made a big playoff run in 2015, but then they saw GM Alex Anthopoulos walk away after they hired Mark Shapiro, formerly of the Indians, to head up baseball operations. It’s not yet known how much the Blue Jays will spend this offseason, but they’ll have to be active no matter what their budget is, because they’re in win-now mode and are losing some significant pieces to free agency this offseason. Ace pitcher David Price is going to go to the highest bidder. Will it be Toronto?
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