As the OOBL season heads toward its October climax, teams that are not in the playoff hunt are turning their eyes to next season. One has to look no further than the Detroit Tigers to witness how shrewd offseason manuevers can transform a franchise. Last year the Tigers, who now lead the AL Central, were among the worst teams in baseball. One important aspect of their improvement was the free agent market. Free Agency has long been the quickest way to improve in baseball. However, looking at the list of possible free agents for next year, many GM's may find their options limited, especially for starting pitchers.
Said one league source, "I haven't seen a free agency crop of starters this bad since...well, since...since never! There really isn't much there.
More and more GM's seem to be locking up players for long term deals, with special emphasis on front-line starters.
League scout, Ben Oculars says "There is really only one potential #1 or 2 available, and he could still be resigned. After that, there are only 2 or 3 worth much more than the minimum.
Scouts like Oculars feel that Montreal's righty, Tomo Ohka, is the only impact starter. After him, Tampa's Ryan Rupe and Oakland's Brian Lawrence may be good enough to round out a staff.
While starting pitching will be at a premium, bullpen help could be plentiful. By some scouts count as many as ten quality reliever's could go to the highest bidder. Teams may have no choice but to improve their staff by improving their bullpen.
There may be a few bats available as well this offseason. Last year's NL MVP, Chipper Jones has been negotiating with the Braves for an extension. An unidentified source says that Jones has grown tired of haggling and will become a free agent. Like Jones, Seattle 1B Jason Giambi has been working on an extension. If the Mariners can't sign him, look for he and Jones to vie for the biggest contract. Other free agent hitters could include Seattle's John Olerud, Arizona's Luis Gonzalez and Houston's Jeremy Burnitz.
Famed scout, I.B. Hunten says, "I just hope no GM's will be depending on landing an ace this winter. It aint gonna happen. Someone will probably overpay for what pitching is there, and the next GM will have to deal with the headache of a bad contract.