With the 2015 season now officially behind us, the time is nigh for Matt Silverman to undergo the arduous task of assembling a formidable squad for the upcoming season. As questions of next season’s 40-man roster linger, a contingent of offseason moves will need to be made if the Tampa Bay Rays are going to put together a late run through next October.
What will the Rays bullpen look like? Who will the team sign to take the place of Asdrubal Cabrera at short? Might John Jaso return as the team’s designated hitter? So on and so forth… One thing is certain ― the Rays’ president of baseball operations figures to have a tall task ahead of him, starting now.
While it’s easy to get bogged down by the minutia of the offseason, Steve Adams (MLB Trade Rumors) compiled a list of the most important dates facing front offices this winter ― something that will undoubtedly come in handy over the next 108 days as we hurl toward the date when pitchers and catchers report to camp:
- November 2: First day of an exclusive five-day negotiation window which all teams have with their free-agent-eligible players.
- November 6: Final day for teams to extend qualifying offers to free agents. Qualifying offers must be submitted by 5pm ET.
- November 7: Players become eligible to sign with any team.
- November 13: Deadline for players to accept or reject qualifying offers. Players must formally make their decision by 5pm ET.
- November 9-12: GM Meetings are held in Florida. While not as active as December’s Winter Meetings, the groundwork for many trades and free-agent signings will take place here, and a few moves figure to be completed.
- December 2: Deadline for teams to decide whether or not to tender contracts to their arbitration-eligible players. The free agent market should expand to some degree on this day, albeit with relatively minor names.
- December 7-10: Winter Meetings in Nashville. These four days are among the most chaotic of the year for those who follow trades and free agency — often even more so than the days leading up to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. MLBTR will be providing 24-hour, around-the-clock coverage while the Winter Meetings are in effect.
Thankfully there are also a few other handy tools at the ready as we chart the course toward Spring Training.
Baseball America listed all 139 free agent players eligible to negotiate and sign with any club beginning at midnight on November 7.
While you’re at it, MLB Trade Rumor’s free agent tracker was launched in late October. The tracker will be updated throughout the winter as agreements are reached.
Finally, are you feeling like a glutton for punishment, knowing full well that Stuart Sternberg will likely spend somewhere in the ballpark of $72M on his investment…urm, uh, team next season? Get a head start on plotting Tampa Bay’s potential course of action by giving these arbitration projections a quick once over. If they hold true, the Rays could to spend $28.9M on the 11 arbitration eligible players listed.
We’ll continue to break down the season past, as well as keep you up to date on any news of transactions as it breaks.
Noteworthiness
― Per Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) Asdrubal Cabrera, John Jaso, and Grady Sizemore are free agents. They can sign elsewhere starting Saturday, and no preemptive action is expected.
― Congratulations are in order to former Rays’ fan favorites Ben Zobrist and Wade Davis, and the Kansas City Royals on their World Series victory!