The MLB Hot Stove could heat up quickly
Traditionally, baseball is known to be a slower paced sport. Not only on the field, but off the field in the offseason. Owners wait for the price on free agents and trades to go down and players and agents wait until teams get desperate as spring training nears.
The slow pace of the offseason is ultimately bad when you compare it to the other three major sports that all have a period of time that is a free agent frenzy that locks people on to their phones waiting for their team to make a move.
The GM meetings take place starting this week. It is usually a time of inactivity despite groundwork being done on signings and possible trades. This year everyone is gathering in Scottsdale, Arizona from the 7th-9th.
Bob Nightengale of USA Today relays GMs and executives are saying this year feels differently. “This is the first time, they can remember, where 29 of the 30 teams are actually trying to win.” The one exception is the Oakland Athletics.
One GM said to Nightengale “I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s the first time we’ve had 29 teams all talking about winning. Every team you talk to wants to be aggressive.”
With so many teams looking to win, free agents are going to be that much more expensive. Teams might not wait around for prices to go down. Players will have more leverage with more teams willing to spend money.
Trades could either require ready now prospects or more major league swaps occur as teams focus on winning quickly. Last offseason, there was the one-for-one trade of infielder Luis Arraez for starter Pablo Lopez. A move such as that might become more popular.
Free agent signings and trades will continue until January, but it would be big for the buzz around baseball to see a lot of action early.
Follow Matt on Twitter @Bstrong415
For additional Red Sox, Bruins, Patriots, MLB and NFL content follow Beyond the Monster on Twitter @BeyondtheMnstr.
