MLB Free Agency

The most common thought of the week—I know because I've said it, wrote it, texted it and tweeted it myself—is how there won't be much left for teams to do at next week's winter meetings because everything has already happened.

Nobody is offering the New York Yankees a shoulder to cry on following Friday's free-agent departures of Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson.

Robinson Cano's ten-year, $240 million deal with the Seattle Mariners, which was first reported by Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes (spanish link) earlier in the day, ties him with Albert Pujols for the third-highest contract ever handed out to a major league player—Alex Rodriguez holds the record for the first two sp

Things have really been heating up on the MLB Hot Stove as of late. A number of big-name free agents have already signed, but there are more top players that are still on the market.

Teams will be competing over the remaining free agents, but there are some fits that are much better than others.

However, for one reason or another, there are many dream MLB free-agent fits that simply will not happen this winter. A player may be perfect for a team, but it might not be able to afford him.

With the New York Post’s Joel Sherman reporting that the New York Mets inked Curtis Granderson to a four-year, $60 million deal, the team is undoubtedly improved heading into the 2014 season.

Who needs the MLB winter meetings? 

Teams evidently didn't want to wait until the second week of December to complete major offseason transactions. Impact players like Robinson Cano, Curtis Granderson and Carlos Beltran all made decisions about their baseball futures on Thursday and Friday.

After five consecutive losing seasons, free-agent disasters like Frank Francisco and payroll slashing into mid-market territory, the New York Mets made a splash on Friday morning. According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, ex-Yankees outfielder Curtis Granderson is on his way to Queens on a four-year, $60 million deal. 

As Chicago prepares itself for its first major snowstorm of the season, members of the Ricketts family and the front office prepare to make the trip to Orlando for next week's winter meetings.

Jealous much? Thought so.

Many topics will be addressed and decided on at the meetings, from the future of instant replay to the fate of free agents around the league.

With the MLB winter meetings rapidly approaching, there's sure to be a flurry of activity on the free-agent market.

That means it's time to re-rank the top 10 MLB offseason targets as the calendar turns to December. With big names like Brian McCann and Jhonny Peralta already off the board, there's some reshuffling to be done. 

Even though it is still early in the offseason, there have already been a few MLB teams that have taken big steps forward for the 2014 season.

Some franchises have looked to the trade market to fill a pressing need, while others have been able to pick up impact free agents.

There is still a lot of time left this winter, and there are many big-name players on the market. Thus far, there are some clear early winners of the 2014 MLB offseason.