One Week 'til Players Report: Who Won the Offseason?

Posted by Iroquois Plisken

The Major League Baseball offseason has nearly come to a close, though you wouldn't know it by the weather. This is approaching one of the hallmarks of the year: March Madness, Baseball Opening, NBA Playoffs, Hockey Existing (...?), and my birthday all coincide. We should have no shortage of fodder in the upcoming weeks for your mental and physical (?) entertainment. For now, let's take a look at a few teams I think did very well in the offseason.

Seattle Mariners - I really liked the Cliff Lee acquisiton for the Mariners. They have a strong 1-2 punch with King Felix and Lee, both of whom should contend for the Cy Young this year. If Erik Bedard pulls himself together, Seattle could have a surprisingly effective 1-4 punch (I would go Lee, Hernandez, Bedard, Snell to throw a LRLR, but that won't happen). But, their problems last year were on offense. Chone Figgins isn't a slugger by any stretch of the imagination, but he should help address a team whose batting average was awful last year and provide a flexible #2 hitter behind Ichiro (or leadoff if it is so required). They still need to work on power after getting an unexpected boost from Russell Branyan last year, but for now they're taking steps in the right direction. Last but not least, they acquired Milton Bradley. Hope they're saying "Yahtzee!" at the end of the year rather than dealing with Aggravation.

Minnesota Twins - Keith Law sorta stole my thunder here, but they've had a sneaky good offseason. The Twins have a knack for employing some of my favorite fantasy baseball middle relievers who actually translate well to real life. Pat Neshek and Matt Guerrier spring to mind. Anyhow, they get a contract year out of uber-catcher Joe Mauer, another quasi-MVP year out of Justin Morneau, and added more consistent offense in the middle with Orlando Hudson. J.J. Hardy's a bit of a streaker, but in flashes, he's great (they only wish they had the legendary Nathan Andreassen). Brendan Harris should improve this year as well. If Frankie Liriano comes back and Scott Baker stops toying with his fantasy owners, they should challenge Detroit for the division next year.

Boston Red Sox - Yeah, their offense plummeted this offseason, but I think they did an alright job shoring up their defense and pitching. They overpaid a bit for Lackey, but they can afford to do that. They probably overpaid for Adrian Beltre, but he would be better this year than Mike Lowell would anyhow. Mike Cameron, Marco Scutaro, and Jose Iglesias are all solid additions, with Iglesias projected to man shortstop in a couple of years. The new rotation of Beckett, Lester, Lackey, Matsuzaka, and Buchholz ought to have confidence in the fielders behind them and should throw as such this year. To improve, they need to acquire some LHP for the bullpen.

Atlanta Braves - Just to throw an NL team out there. I wasn't super impressed with any major National League moves (way overpaid for Holliday/Bay, e.g.), but the Braves at least have something to look forward to. Tommy Hanson is still alive and kicking, which is a boon for them, plus Jason Heyward is waiting in the minors. But, even Atlanta made a couple of questionable moves. Who is this guy Rafael Soriano was traded for? Why did they give up a 1RP to sign Billy Wagner? Slate may chime in another time with his offseason winners, mostly because he's a well-documented National League fan.

Up Wednesday and Thursday: a current NBA coach gives us his opinion of the trade deadline.