The MLB offseason didn't end with the conclusion of the winter meetings. Far, far from it. There are still a gaggle of big names unsigned, after all, and a couple of long, cold months before the first spring thaw.
That's ample time for agents and general managers to haggle, players to ponder and, at long last, all the trade and free-agent pieces to fall into place.
That said, baseball's annual December confab—held this time around in Nashville, Tennessee, the City of Music—rocked the game in a few significant ways.
Impact names signed, seismic swaps were consummated, off-the-field troubles surfaced—and, above all, we got a clearer idea of which teams are going all-in for 2016.
Even as we keep our hands to the hot stove and our eyes and ears on the rumor mill, here's a look at four ways the winter meetings shifted the offseason landscape.
The Diamondbacks Struck—Hard
Say what you want about the Arizona Diamondbacks. No one can accuse them of being timid.
The $206.5 million Zack Greinke mega-deal went down before the winter meetings, but the Snakes made headlines in Nashville by engineering a huge trade for right-hander Shelby Miller.
To land Miller, Arizona sent a gaudy package to the Atlanta Braves that included shortstop Dansby Swanson, last year's No. 1 overall pick, plus center fielder Ender Inciarte and minor league right-hander Aaron Blair.
Swanson and Blair immediately became Atlanta's No. 1 and No. 4 prospects, according to MLB.com. And Inciarte is a strong defensive player and leadoff-quality hitter who posted a .303 average with 21 stolen bases in his sophomore season.
That's a lot to give up for a pitcher who isn't even going to be your ace. And, indeed, the deal drew plenty of criticism.
Here's a representative barb from ESPN's David Schoenfield: "Heck, Inciarte may be worth more than Miller by himself and is certainly proof that executives Dave Stewart and Tony La Russa are out of touch in the analytics game."
It's a valid point. There are few, if any, ways to look at this trade and not see an overpay. Clearly, though, the D-Backs entered this offseason intent on addressing their biggest weakness—a starting rotation that ranked 23rd in the game with a 4.37 ERA.
And, undeniably, Greinke and Miller make the Diamondbacks better. Greinke, MLB's reigning ERA king, is the big prize. But Miller is coming off a strong season that saw him post career bests in innings (205.1) and strikeouts (171) and make his first All-Star team.
It's entirely possible Arizona could be this winter's San Diego Padres, a club that "wins" the offseason only to watch its machinations disintegrate into a losing campaign.
But with an offense led by Paul Goldschmidt and, now, a revamped rotation, these Snakes are poised to challenge the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants for supremacy in the National League West.
"I value the draft picks just as much as other ballclubs," Stewart said after the Miller trade, per the Associated Press (h/t Fox Sports). "I think the difference is if my gut tells me to do something then I follow my gut."
The Cubs Became the NL Team to Beat
When Jason Heyward and the offseason's other bats sign (more on that in a moment) everything could change. For now, though, the Chicago Cubs are the team to beat not only in the National League Central, but the Senior Circuit in general.
They cemented that status at the winter meetings by inking veteran super-utility man Ben Zobrist to a four-year, $56 million deal.
The years are iffy for a player who turns 35 in May. But Zobrist, who can capably play around the infield and in the corner outfield spots, is exactly the kind of versatile weapon Cubs manager Joe Maddon covets. In fact, Zobrist was Maddon's personal Swiss army knife during their days with the Tampa Bay Rays.
More than anything, Zobrist and right-hander John Lackey, who the Cubs landed before the meetings, inject a solid veteran presence into Chicago's young, talent-laden locker room.
And both come with postseason pedigrees. Lackey has a long October resume and has won titles with the Boston Red Sox and then-Anaheim Angels. Zobrist, meanwhile, is about to receive a ring from the Kansas City Royals.
Will that championship dust rub off on the Cubs who blossomed ahead of schedule and streaked to the National League Championship Series last year? The long-suffering North Side faithful undoubtedly can't wait to find out.
Aroldis Chapman's Troubles Upended the Closer Market
The winter meetings kicked off on a sour note when the Los Angeles Dodgers moved to acquire flame-throwing closer Aroldis Chapman from the Cincinnati Reds, only to watch the deal stall amidst troubling allegations of domestic violence.
There are big issues at play here, obviously, that make the baseball stuff seem trivial by comparison.
But Chapman's limbo altered the bullpen picture significantly. Craig Kimbrel, the other top closer on the trading block, was snatched up early in the offseason by the Boston Red Sox. And the free-agent market is much thinner after the Baltimore Orioles and Royals signed Darren O'Day and Joakim Soria, respectively.
That left clubs in need of late-inning help scrambling and precipitated a number of deals. Several mid-tier bullpen options such as John Axford and Shawn Kelley came off the board, but the most significant acquisition was the trade that sent Ken Giles to the Houston Astros.
Giles, just 25 years old and under team control through 2020, cost the 'Stros a package of minor league and big league talent. But he's also a burgeoning, shutdown stud who owns a 1.56 ERA with 151 strikeouts in 115.2 career innings.
Chapman may still be traded before the spring. But his status, and that of the relief-pitcher market, did a serious 180 this week.
All Eyes on Heyward
So about that Heyward fellow. Entering the meetings, it wasn't clear who would be the honorary "logjam player," the star whose impending signing gummed up the works and left everyone else backed up behind.
Turns out it was Heyward, who is being pursued by the Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals and Washington Nationals, according to CBS Sports' Jon Heyman.
Heyman also added that Heyward has a $200 million offer on the table, likely from St. Louis or Washington.
When Heyward signs, he'll set the price tag for the other top hitters and probably set off a chain reaction that sparks a rapid series of huge contracts.
Justin Upton, Yoenis Cespedes, Chris Davis—this winter is swimming with impact bats. None of them changed hands at the meetings but you can bet a lot of groundwork was laid over drinks and in back rooms. Really, the same can be said on the pitching side, where ace-level arms like Johnny Cueto remain unsigned.
The rumors are fun and the trades and signings are titillating. But sometimes, it's the stuff almost no one sees that sets the stage for the excitement to come.
The MLB offseason didn't end in Nashville. In fact, you could argue, it's just getting started.
All statistics and contract information current as of Dec. 11 and courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.
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