A TREASURE STOVE
DAVIDOFF
IF THE FORM of this 2018 season holds through the Hot Stove League, then the Red Sox will win every award, sign every big free agent and maybe even a capture an Oscar or two.
Nevertheless, the game’s recent history — we’re now at 18 years without a repeat champion, baseball’s longest such stretch ever — underlines the difficulty of winning back to back. That should provide sufficient motivation for those non-denizens of Red Sox Nation to saddle up again and give this fandom thing another shot, starting now.
In rough chronological order, here’s your guide to baseball’s offseason — nine storylines in honor of nine innings, naturally — between this very moment and the arrival of pitchers and catchers.
1. Brodie Van Wagenen
The Mets launch the proceedings Tuesday with the introduction of their new, controversial general manager at a Citi Field news conference. To answer all of your questions in advance: No, I don’t get it either.
2. Opt-outs and options
Wednesday marks the deadline for players and teams to act on previously negotiated windows to change up their deals or keep them intact. Most notably, the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw can opt out of two years and $65 million (he spoke late Sunday like he wouldn’t mind an extension in return for staying put), the Red Sox’s David Price can opt out of four years and $127 million (it would be a shock if he did so) and the Yankees have to either pick up Brett Gardner’s $12.5 million option or buy him out for $2 million (it’s a closer call than you think).
3. Hirings
The Giants still need a general manager; it could be Mets runner-up Chaim Bloom of t he Rays. The Rangers still need a manager; they’ve already eliminated Joe Girardi. And the Orioles still need both, although it’s not clear they know that.
4. Awards
The best day of the Mets’ offseason figures to be Nov. 14, when Jacob deGrom deservingly wins the National League Cy Young award. Let’s set the over-under at 20 of the 30 first-place votes. The American League Rookie of the Year will be announced Nov. 12, and the bet here is on Yankees Miguel Andujar and Gleyber Torres falling short to amazing Angel Shohei Ohtani. The Most Valuable Players and Managers of the Year also will be announced that week.
5. Free agents
This long-hyped class starts with Bryce Harper and Manny Machado, the dueling 26- yearolds both aiming to surpass Giancarlo Stanton’s record $325 million package. Many of the other names from this envisioned super-class — think Josh Donaldson, Matt Harvey, Andrew McCutchen and Andrew Miller — have seen their stocks drop precipitously, and the horrible Jose Fernandez story gets his own category.
In addition to the Harper and Machado sweeps t a ke s , we’ l l monitor the Yankees’ search for starting pitching (Patrick Corbin and J.A. Happ?), the high-end relievers sweepstakes (Zach Britton, Craig Kimbrel and David Robertson) and, after last year’s slowdown t hat led to a 31st spring-training site for unsigned free agents, let’s see how many middle-class free agents sign expediently — and cheaply — to avoid that agita.
6. Trades
By definition, last year’s Stanton-to-the-Yankees blockbuster can’t be matched, since no one currently makes more money than him. Furthermore, there are no obvious tankers like last year’s Marlins who will be looking to jettison multiple valuable assets. Will the Indians capitalize on their depth, the AL Central’s shallowness and the lackluster free-agent starting-pitching market to trade Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer or Carlos Carrasco? Will the Giants take a step back, if not tear down altogether, and shop icon Madison Bumgarner with one year left on his contract?
7. Retirements
Joe Mauer sure acted like he was done, putting on his old catching equipment for a pitch during the Twins’ l ast game. Adrian Beltre seemed uncertain, though still helped the Rangers. Bartolo Colon sounded open to keep going, yet he didn’t help the Rangers much at age 45.
8. Hall of Fame
Let’s s t ar t with the cl oser: Mariano Rivera undoubtedly will gain f irst-year induction. The late Roy Halladay might join him, and also bet on Rivera’s old nemesis Edgar Martinez, who fell less than 5 percent short last year and enters his final year on the writers’ ballot. Rivera’s Core Four pal Andy Pettitte also will be a ballot rookie and will face a considerably more challenging journey to Cooperstown.
9. Peace talks
Remember last winter’s acrimony between the players and owners, tied partly into free agency and partly into rules changes? Commissioner Rob Manfred and Players Association executive director Tony Clark have met a few times in the hopes of avoiding that nonsense, although player paydays will be the ultimate determinant.
The limiting of mound visits worked very nicely. How about a pitch clock next? The players unfortunately don’t seem excited about that one. So how about the owners take the next hit and agree to a decrease in commercial time between innings?