Bleacher Report's Complete 2014-2015 MLB Offseason Preview

Weep, for the 2014 Major League Baseball season is over.

And now rejoice, for the 2014-2015 MLB offseason has begun!

That is a thing worth being excited about, you know. Sure, there's a long time between now and spring training, but the Hot Stove season has plenty to offer to help pass the time. Free agency. Trades. Extensions. Awards. Announcements. The whole nine yards, really.

That's the gist of what will be going on over the next few months. For a deeper dive into what's to come, go ahead and start the slideshow for a full preview.

Anybody need pitching? Because that's where the appeal of this winter's free-agent market begins.

The Arms

At the very top of the list of desirables is Max Scherzer. With a 3.02 ERA and a 10.2 K/9 rate since the start of 2013 and, oh yeah, an American League Cy Young in his back pocket, the 30-year-old right-hander is in line for a huge payday.

Also out there, meanwhile, are left-hander Jon Lester and right-hander James Shields.

The latter's market hasn't been helped by a poor postseason, but eight straight seasons of over 200 innings and a 3.17 ERA since 2011 should have teams lining up anyway. As for Lester, he followed an excellent postseason run in 2013 with a 2.46 ERA over 219.2 innings in 2014. Just as important for his market, he won't be getting a qualifying offer (more on that in a moment) after being traded midseason.

It's not all about the aces, of course. Teams looking for mid-rotation types will have options as well, ranging from Ervin Santana to Francisco Liriano to Brandon McCarthy to Jason Hammel. For anyone interested in a reclamation project, Justin Masterson is very much worth a look.

This winter's market will also feature some late-inning relief types, including "proven closers" David Robertson, Francisco Rodriguez and Koji Uehara. Also don't forget about Andrew Miller, as the left-hander is no longer underrated after his star-making postseason work with the Baltimore Orioles.

The Bats

There's nobody as appealing as Robinson Cano among the bats that will be available this winter, but there will be more than enough good options.

Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval will attract interest from teams looking for power on the left side of the infield. Russell Martin is a rare catcher who can do it all. Veteran designated hitter Victor Martinez put himself in line for a big payday by leading the American League in on-base percentage and on-base plus slugging percentages (OPS) in 2014. And after he led baseball with 40 home runs, there will be no denying the value of Nelson Cruz's power this year.

Other names of note include switch-hitting third baseman Chase Headley and left fielder Melky Cabrera, with Michael Cuddyer and Mike Morse standing out as good right-handed bats and Stephen Drew, Jed Lowrie and Asdrubal Cabrera standing out as solid middle infield options. And if Masterson is the market's pitching reclamation project, powerful center fielder Colby Rasmus is its hitting reclamation project.

Fair warning: Don't be surprised when a lot of these guys get paid more than you expected. With offensive production continuing to go nowhere but down in MLB, it's a good time to be a hitter for hire.

Ah, yes. The qualifying offer. This will be its third year in effect, and it's likely to once again have a huge impact on the comings and goings of free agents.

For those who don't know, the qualifying offer is a one-year contract a club can offer to its free agents, with the price set at the average of the league's top 125 contracts by average annual value. If a player rejects it ahead of the as-yet-undetermined deadline, he becomes tied to draft pick compensation that results in his new team losing a pick and his old team gaining a pick if he signs elsewhere.

As reported by The Associated Press, this year's qualifying offer is worth $15.3 million. That's a $1.2 million raise over last year's $14.1 million value, and that could be big.

Whereas we've seen players reject qualifying offers and see the demand for their services suffer from teams not wanting to surrender draft picks—particularly last year, when Nelson Cruz had to settle for a one-year deal and Stephen Drew and Kendrys Morales didn't sign until after the 2014 season began—the prospect of making $15.3 million for one year could simply be too appealing for some players.

For example, Joel Sherman of the New York Post has wondered if David Robertson would accept a qualifying offer from the New York Yankees rather than seek a multiyear deal in free agency. Other fringe stars could do the same, as the risk of being forced to settle for less than a one-year, $15.3 million deal is very real.

We shall see. Love it or hate it, the qualifying offer at least makes things interesting.

While most of the attention this winter will be on the domestic free agents, what Jose Abreu and Masahiro Tanaka did in 2014 is a good reminder not to forget about international free agents.

The most appealing of this year's bunch is Yasmani Tomas, a right-handed slugger from Cuba who will only be 24 years old in 2015. And according to Ben Badler of Baseball America, Tomas' power is legit:

A righthanded-hitting corner outfielder, Tomas can hit towering home runs thanks to the strength from his thickly-built 6-foot-1, 230-pound frame. Tomas has 70 raw power on the 20-80 scale, and with Jose Abreu already gone, the only player still in Cuba with more raw power than him was Alfredo Despaigne.

The downside is that Tomas' below-average speed will limit him to corner outfield duty. But with right-handed power in short supply, he's likely to be the next Cuban import to receive a huge payday.

Other Cubans on the market this winter include first baseman Jozzen Cuesta and left-hander Misael Siverio, but don't expect them to do quite as well. Jeff Moore of Baseball Prospectus reported that they treated scouts to "pedestrian performances" at a workout in early September.

More recent Cuban defectors who could sign this winter are right-hander Jorge Despaigne, left-hander Yasmany Hernandez and second basemen Hector Olivera and Andy Ibanez. For more on them, B/R's Mike Rosenbaum has you covered.

Elsewhere, it's possible that the next big pitching import from Japan will be available this winter. That would be right-hander Kenta Maeda, who could be in line for a $100 million contract if Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe is to be believed.

The Hiroshima Carp have to post Maeda first, though. And according to The Japan Times, they may not be inclined to do that after Maeda authored a 2.56 ERA for them in 2014.

Of course, it's not just through free agency and international free agency that teams can add players. You can once again expect the trade market to be very active...

If the bidding for Max Scherzer, Jon Lester or James Shields gets out of control this winter, clubs could always give up and pursue an ace on the trade market instead.

To that end, the first name on a lot of lists could be Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Cole Hamels.

According to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, the Phillies could very well deal Hamels, whom a rival executive called "their only [valuable] trading chip." That executive is right; Hamels is 30 years old and coming off a quietly excellent season that featured a 2.46 ERA.

Of course, trading for Hamels means getting around his 20-team no-trade list and absorbing most or all of the $96 million remaining on his contract. But where there's a will, there's a way.

If not Hamels, teams looking to acquire an ace on the trade market could have other options. As Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com speculated, the San Diego Padres could dangle Andrew Cashner or Tyson Ross, and the Cincinnati Reds could deal Johnny Cueto or Mat Latos.

As far as possible bats on the trade market, there could be plenty of outfield options available. Nick Cafardo is one of many who has said the Boston Red Sox may make Yoenis Cespedes available. David O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has said the Atlanta Braves could deal an outfielder, and you can also expect to again hear plenty of rumors about the Los Angeles Dodgers' outfield logjam.

Infield help may be harder to find, but some big names might be moved. ESPN's Buster Olney (subscription required) floated Oakland A's star third baseman Josh Donaldson as a possibility. And though Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post said the Colorado Rockies dealing Troy Tulowitzki is a long shot, they'll surely get calls about him.

Wondering where Giancarlo Stanton's name is? Here's a hint: next slide.

The offseason isn't all about free-agent signings and trades, you know. It's also a time for teams to lock up their own guys.

And rather than dealing him, that's what the Miami Marlins could do with Giancarlo Stanton this winter. The hulking slugger is finally eligible for arbitration, but Marlins president David Samson told Clark Spencer of The Miami Herald in September that the team is thinking something longer-term.

"He's on this team [in 2015] either way," said Samson. “I can't wait until after the season to sit down with Giancarlo and [agent] Joel Wolfe and talk about contract. We're ready. We want him to be a Marlin well past his arbitration years."

Elsewhere in the NL East, the Washington Nationals could hand out several extensions. Shortstop Ian Desmond and starters Jordan Zimmermann and Doug Fister are due for free agency after 2015, and Mark Zuckerman of NatsInsider.com has noted the Nationals have had extension talks with them in the past.

Another possibility is the Detroit Tigers extending David Price before he can hit free agency after 2015, though there hasn't been much movement on that front. At last check, Price was telling Chis Iott of MLive.com that an extension was the last thing on his mind.

If Price isn't extended, Corey Kluber might be. Jeff Todd of MLB Trade Rumors pondered a possible extension for the Cleveland Indians ace in August. Another guy who could ride a breakout 2014 season to an extension, as pondered by MLBTR's Steve Adams, is Pittsburgh Pirates super-utility man Josh Harrison.

These are just a few of frankly dozens of extension candidates. If the last couple of years have taught us anything, it's that teams and players are more willing to make music than they've ever been before.

While the bulk of the focus will be on the movement of players this winter, don't forget about the managers.

Granted, there's not a whole lot of movement left to be done with them. Manager firings and hirings tend to happen shortly after the end of the regular season, so it's no surprise that there's only one team still in need of a manager.

That would be the Minnesota Twins, and they could fill their need very soon. According to La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the Twins could have a replacement for the fired Ron Gardenhire before the end of the week.

Elsewhere, Joe Maddon is looking for work after opting out of his contract with the Tampa Bay Rays last week. What he would do next was anyone's guess at the time, but now it sounds like his new job could be official any minute.

As reported by Jon Heyman, Maddon and the Chicago Cubs "are on the verge of agreeing to a mega deal" to make Maddon the club's next skipper. Nothing was official Wednesday night, but FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal noted that this was presumably because the World Series was still in progress.

If Maddon does indeed take Rick Renteria's job in Chicago, that will leave just the Twins without a manager. If they fill their need by Friday, then...well, OK, that will likely be all for managerial musical chairs for a while.

So, aside from player and manager movement, what else is there to keep an eye on this offseason?

In a word: plenty.

For the first time since 2006, MLB stars like Robinson Cano, Adam Jones and Yasiel Puig will be headed to Japan for the Japan All-Star Series. That's a series of exhibition games that will kick off Nov. 11.

Around that same time is when MLB will hand out its major awards. As reported by Sporting News, the Rookie of the Year, Manager of the Year, Cy Young and MVP awards will be handed out over a period of four days starting Nov. 10.

About a month later is when you can expect the 2015 Hall of Fame ballot to be revealed, with the key first-timers being Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez and John Smoltz. Later in January, we'll find out who's going into Cooperstown in 2015.

Aside from these things, don't forget that this will be Bud Selig's final winter as MLB's commissioner. There will be plenty of league matters for him to see to.

Perhaps instant replay will get some tweaks. For that matter, maybe the home plate collision rule will too. There could also be some movement on speeding up the pace of play. If Selig really rolls up his sleeves, maybe there will be progress on the stadium issues of the Oakland A's and Tampa Bay Rays.

And that's not all. Other matters for Selig to see to include MLB possibly implementing a domestic violence policy, and there's plenty of groundwork to be laid for the next collective bargaining agreement.

Several months lie between now and the start of spring training, but don't worry. Lots will be happening.

If you absorb as much of it as possible, you should be able to survive the winter.

Note: Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted/linked.