With free agency underway, the offseason is about to pick up steam. What are the big questions facing all 30 teams? We've already covered the AL East, NL East, AL Central, NL Central and AL West, and now we're moving on to the National League West.
Should they corral expenses or go for it financially?
2016 record: 91-71
Justin Turner, Kenley Jansen and Rich Hill are free agents, so why don't the big-money Dodgers just sign all of them at top dollar if they like them so much?
It's the age-old question.
If you really want to win, as some fans believe, you should just throw as much money as you can at the problem until it is solved. Yet if sustained success is the goal, development and nurturing young and talented prospects probably needs to come first. Once those young players show they are ready to deliver, then it would be time to spend money to fill any remaining holes.
It is the way the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians are doing it. Both teams have established young cores and then attacked needs around that. The Houston Astros are another organization doing it the same way.
All indications suggest the Dodgers are not going to continue to spend freely, and it is not because they don't want to win it all next year. They want to be in a position to win it multiple times for a long stretch.
So the idea that Turner, Jansen and Hill all return seems to be a long shot. It's not impossible, but the money that it would take to bring them back does not fit with the strategy that seems to be developing.
The challenge is that the Dodgers do not have an obvious replacement at third base, closer and No. 2 starter.
Expect the Dodgers to have talented players in those three spots next season, with at least one of those players returning. Yet in developing the 2017 roster, the front office is likely to be more creative about it than just opening up the checkbook. -- Doug Padilla
So who's it going to be, Kenley Jansen or Aroldis Chapman?
2016 record: 87-75
We all know what happened: After owning the majors' best record at the All-Star break -- yes, better than the Cubs -- they plummeted to 30-42 in the second half. The bullpen drew the brunt of the criticism, although the offense declined from 4.71 runs per game to 4.04. The Giants lost 12 games they were leading after seven innings and nine they led after eight, and we all know what happened in the ninth inning of Game 4 of the NL Division Series.
The longtime trio of Santiago Casilla, Sergio Romo and Javier Lopez enters free agency, clearing up $20.5 million in payroll. Angel Pagan and Jake Peavy also come off the books, although other players are due increases. Still, the Giants should have $20-plus million to spend.
Obviously, signing Jansen would have double value: Adding an elite closer while subtracting him from your division rival. But he and Chapman could end up getting close to $20 million per season, and the Giants may want to spend some of that money on an outfielder instead (Yoenis Cespedes would look nice in left field). Mark Melancon would be a cheaper option, although without the same dominance and more of a risk. -- David Schoenfield
Are they ready to make a push for contention?
2016 record: 75-87
The Rockies went 75-87, which for them qualifies as a good season. It was their best record since 2010, but also a sixth straight losing campaign. They actually got a game over .500 in early August before a late fade resulted in general manager Jeff Bridich firing Walt Weiss and hiring former Padres skipper Bud Black as the new manager.
Black has a good reputation in baseball circles, but in nine seasons with the Padres he finished over .500 just twice and never made the playoffs, so it's hard to even argue that he got the most out of the talent on hand. The one thing he was consistently pretty good at was building bullpens, and that's where the Rockies need a lot of help after finishing with an MLB-worst 5.13 bullpen ERA.
Now, some of the advanced metrics say the pen wasn't as bad as the 5.13 ERA indicates -- it had a 4.35 FIP and ranked 21st in FanGraphs WAR. Still, it's been a long time since the Rockies had a good pen, and because their starters rarely compile a lot of innings, they need a deep core of relievers.
I'd like to see the Rockies find a real first baseman. They've basically been faking the position for a decade now. Here is their annual ranking among the 30 teams in wins above average at first base. Other than 2014, when Justin Morneau won a batting title, it's been a sorry lot for the most part:
2016: 24
2015: 26
2014: 8
2013: 28
2012: 23
2011: 11
2010: 25
2009: 14
2008: 19
2007: 4
There's been talk of Carlos Gonzalez playing first base, but that just opens up a gaping hole in the outfield (let alone if they shop Charlie Blackmon for pitching help). The Rockies always overrate their offense. How about adding Edwin Encarnacion in Coors Field? -- David Schoenfield
How much of a difference will the return of A.J. Pollock make?
2016 record: 69-93
Let's offer one kind word to the old regime of Tony La Russa and Dave Stewart -- if A.J. Pollock doesn't fracture his elbow in spring training, Mike Hazen might not be the general manager this winter. Losing Pollock hurt the Snakes' offense last year, but it may well have killed the D-backs on defense. From 2015 to 2016, Arizona dropped from plus-60 defensive runs saved to minus-18 -- a nearly eight-win swing on defensive value alone.
Maybe putting all of that on Pollock's absence is a stretch, but we're talking about losing a premium glove (plus-14 DRS in 2015, which helped him earn a Gold Glove) on a team saddled with dubious defenders like Yasmany Tomas and Jake Lamb. The D-backs delivered a .665 defensive efficiency, which wasn't just the worst in the NL last year, but among the worst team marks in MLB in any year since 1969. Robbie Ray's NL-worst .355 BABIP or Shelby Miller's career-worst .343 BABIP weren't functions of bad luck on balls in play -- they're symptoms of a porous defense in an already tough park for pitchers.
Now Hazen has to determine how much a fully functioning Pollock might change the outlook on everything else he's inherited. A stronger defense will help make Ray, Miller, Archie Bradley and Patrick Corbin look good lined up behind Zack Greinke in the rotation. That might leave Hazen to ponder simpler winter shopping needs, like picking up a closer, and deciding whether or not moving Jean Segura back to shortstop would free them to pursue moving infield parts like Justin Turner or Luis Valbuena, or even go after a bat-first second baseman like Neil Walker. If those sound like the moves a contender might make, don't be shocked -- getting Pollock back as one of the best players in the league could help Hazen look very good, very fast. -- Christina Kahrl
Can they conjure up a starting rotation?
2016 record: 68-94
That's the nuts-and-bolts issue for the Padres to sort out over the winter. Sure, you could also say they need a better closer than Brandon Maurer or somebody who can play shortstop, but sure-thing solutions are rare, expensive and probably outside the Padres' reach, even with their considerable payroll flexibility. They could use a starting outfielder, but they may end up picking from among their current crew of Hunter Renfroe, Manuel Margot, Oswaldo Arcia, Travis Jankowski and Alex Dickerson.
The other problem is that to stock their staff after their slow-motion teardown, they don't have much left to trade with -- assuming there's any trust left in the industry after general manager A.J. Preller got caught dealing damaged goods to both the Red Sox and Marlins last season, earning a rare front-office suspension.
The best starter they have left, Tyson Ross, will have to show he's recovered from an Oct. 13 surgery on his shoulder to alleviate thoracic outlet syndrome after effectively losing the 2016 season to the injury. He's only Padres property for one more year before free agency, and should they shop him, you can expect any interested party to be wary. After that, you get into hoping Colin Rea and Jarred Cosart are healthy, and wondering if they'll send Luis Perdomo down after letting last winter's Rule 5 find take a beating in the big leagues.
The one thing the Padres should have after trading away almost everyone of note is some money, plus Petco's reputation as a great place to pitch. So you can expect a number of veterans ready to accept a short-term deal equally receptive to any offer the Padres might make. This winter's market is overstocked on middling starters looking for a new lease on life. A guy like Scott Feldman might fit that profile; you might even get Jake Peavy or Andrew Cashner back in San Diego. -- Christina Kahrl