MLB Trade Rumors

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.

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.

In the aftermath of one of the craziest weeks in recent offseason history, it's natural to wonder if the winter meetings will disappoint baseball fans.

Chicago White Sox general manager Rick Hahn should give his counterpart with the New York Mets a call and offer up Dayan Viciedo for second baseman Daniel Murphy.

It could be an ideal scenario for both the White Sox and the Mets, actually.

Most of the top-tier free agents remain unsigned roughly a month after the frenzy began, but several deals have been struck. Some of them look like good signings and some of them...do not. Here are the early winners and losers of the offseason.

Winners

With a few weeks' worth of free-agent signings and trades in the rearview, the markets at each position have taken shape and shifted to varying degrees. And with many more weeks to go on the unofficial Hot Stove calendar—a stretch that includes the upcoming Winter Meetings, the signature event of the offseason—more trades are likely to be struck.

The 2014 MLB free-agency market is heating up, and no move sparked more controversy this week than Jhonny Peralta's $53 million deal with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Now, the big question is just how lucrative of a contract Nelson Cruz will land. According to the rumbling on the trade market, however, Peralta and Cruz won't be the only Biogenesis-linked players on the move this offseason.

Here are all the latest rumors from the trade block and the free-agent front with a look at which ones are fact and which ones are fiction.

Though the Indians found success in 2013, they have some weaknesses they'll have to address before they're ready to take the next step in 2014.

The club managed a 92-70 record in 2013. However, with the impending losses of Scott Kazmir and Ubaldo Jimenez, combined with the disappointment of players like Lonnie Chisenhall, needs have arisen at third base and also in the starting rotation.

The Mets have both Ike Davis and Lucas Duda on their roster as first base options. Being that they are both left-handed hitters and the Mets are in the National League, it seems all but certain that one of the two will get traded this offseason.

This will be an interesting decision for the Mets to make. They could decide to stick with the more proven Davis, or give Duda a real chance to be the starting first baseman. The Mets, though, should go for proven talent instead of raw potential.

Beyond offering hope to fans of struggling teams, prospects serve a more important purpose at this time of the year.

With Major League Baseball’s free agency underway and every team evaluating their rosters for the 2014 season, prospects can be the deciding factor when it comes to an offseason blockbuster trade.

Last year, top-ranked prospects Travis d’Arnaud, Jake Marisnick and Will Myers were each featured (as part of larger packages) in trades for All-Star players and went on to reach the major leagues during the 2013 season.