What's Next?

Baseball has done a good job of creating a 365-day news cycle. Six weeks of spring training lead into 162 regular season games, and a month-long post-season that carry us from mid-February through Halloween.

Along with a few managerial and coaching spots to be filled, we're almost ready for the off-season. And like last year, one of the big question marks comes out of Washington: where will Anthony Rendon go? The star third baseman, who became a household name during the World Series will be a free agent. It's likely he'll be joined by teammate and Series MVP Stephen Strasburg, who can opt out of the final four years of his deal. And those elite names are joined by an ace from the other dugout: pitcher Gerrit Cole. Add in three-time World Champ Madison Bumgarner, Dodgers lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu and the Mets' Zack Wheeler and we could be in line for massive money and major player movement.

Or maybe not. Will the analytics-driven front offices prefer to "develop their own talent" or will teams that don't consider themselves "a player away," continue to sit on their hands in November and December?

We'll know more as the Hot Stove League gets underway.

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