NL East

A case can be made that the New York Mets possess the best collection of young pitching in the major leagues, with a projected 2015 starting rotation that includes right-handers Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler and National League Rookie of the Year Jacob deGrom.

Plus, it shouldn’t be long until they’re joined by a host of other young arms, too, as prospects Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz both are close to being ready for The Show.

The 2014 MLB winter meetings saw many big splashes, but the Atlanta Braves were not a part of one of them.

Despite rumors of the Braves being involved in trade talks, nothing materialized on that front.

The two main trade targets the Braves are shopping are Justin Upton and Evan Gattis, and things remained quiet on that front throughout the week, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman:

With the 2014 winter meetings having come to an end, the New York Mets did not control the majority of the baseball headlines this week. The Mets, though, did not go into the winter meetings with a big agenda of tasks to complete. There were only a few particular areas the Mets really needed to look into, and they accomplished some, but not all, of their goals this week.

The Atlanta Braves' busy offseason continued Tuesday as they reached an agreement to sign infielder Alberto Callaspo to an undisclosed deal.    

Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez confirmed Jim Bowden of ESPN's initial report to MLB Network Radio:

The Atlanta Braves made a big splash in free agency Wednesday by signing outfielder Nick Markakis, but their new acquisition comes with some baggage in the form of an injury.

From top to bottom, the NL East is ripe with riveting offseason storylines. I will be taking over as a virtual general manager over the next few slides in hopes of addressing each team's most glaring weakness with a potential offseason move.

The Washington Nationals remain the clear favorites in the division, but questions linger after another postseason disappointment. Would another dependable bullpen arm strengthen their cause? 

Now that December has arrived, the annual winter meetings are next up for the New York Mets and the other MLB teams. At that time, all the general managers will meet up and discuss potential signings and trades with each other for a few days.

The Miami Marlins are looking to sign their biggest stars long term and have offered yet another young player a long-term deal. This time, it's pitcher Jose Fernandez who was reportedly offered a six-year, $40 million contract.    

MLB's official Twitter account passed along the report:

For the Washington Nationals and the rest of Major League Baseball, winter is coming. 

The Atlanta Braves have generally focused more on trades and building from within the organization over recent years.

However, with the Braves trading Jason Heyward and actively shopping Justin Upton—as reported by the New York Post's Joel Sherman—they could open up some payroll to get players in the free-agent market.