MLB: Five teams still stuck in no man’s land this offseason

Amidst a quiet MLB offseason, there are a handful of teams that find themselves in a pointless middle ground. It’s time they commit to a strategy.

There are four possible positions for an MLB team to be in each offseason: on the prowl for contention (preferred), restructuring for the present and the future (wise), rebuilding for the future (understandable), and stuck in no man’s land (regrettable).

Here’s each club’s current position:

On the prowl: Dodgers, Padres, Yankees, Braves, Mets, Nationals, White Sox

Restructuring: Rays, Indians, Royals, Astros, Red Sox, Reds, Giants

Rebuilding: Rangers, Pirates, Tigers, Orioles, Cubs, Mariners, Diamondbacks

There is also a “gray area” group consisting of playoff-capable teams that are either content with where they stand or lack the financial resources to join the prowl. The Marlins and Athletics meet both conditions, while the Twins and Blue Jays qualify as playoff teams that are either content or delayed in their efforts to improve.

If your team is one of the five that has yet to appear, that can only mean one frightful thing: they’re stuck in no man’s land.

From here, we’ll explain the dilemma that the five remaining clubs are in and how they can find direction.

Philadelphia Phillies

Payroll

$139,665,962 – (9th highest in MLB)

Contracts

Bryce Harper: 13 years, $330 million – signed February 2019

Zack Wheeler: 5 years, $118 million – signed December 2019

Andrew McCutchen: 3 years, $50 million – $15 million club option in 2022

Dilemma: The Phillies want to make the most of Bryce Harper’s prime, but their product is consistently inferior to that of top division rivals.

In 2020, Philadelphia had the top catcher in baseball and received tremendous contributions from Bryce Harper, Didi Gregorius, Rhys Hoskins, Aaron Nola, and Zack Wheeler. Yet, they finished third in the NL East with a 28-32 record. Despite a myriad of stellar performances, they could not overcome their league-worst bullpen and imbalanced starting rotation.

They have addressed their bullpen this offseason through several under-the-radar acquisitions, as well as a notable one in which they gained LHP Jose Alvarado from the Tampa Bay Rays. Per reports, the Phils are in the process of signing right-handed reliever Archie Bradley, also.

Philadelphia continues to pursue relief help, though their pursuits will be for not if they fail to re-sign J.T. Realmuto and bring in a reliable starting pitcher. (The Phillies have reportedly offered Realmuto five years worth at least $100 million.)

The question is, even if the Phillies accomplish those tasks, will they be good enough to win their division?

The Braves are legitimate World Series threats, the Mets and Nationals are on the verge, and the Marlins are no longer a team to overlook. The Phillies’ pursuit of the division crown will be far from easy, but what choice do they have other than to try and compete?

They’re not going to entertain any degree of a rebuild with Bryce Harper on their roster, and there’s no reason to stand pat as a major-market club with decent financial flexibility. The Philadelphia Phillies must start down the path to winning NOW.

Perhaps the new front office tandem of Dave Dombrowski (President of Baseball Operations) and Sam Fuld (General Manager) will steer them right.

How can the Phils flee no man’s land? Re-sign Realmuto; trade for or sign a #3 starter; add one more quality reliever; sign the most affordable shortstop out of Marcus Semien, Andrelton Simmons, and Didi Gregorius.

It might not be possible to do all of the above before April, but they can start from the top and explore from there.

St. Louis Cardinals

Payroll

$117,766,666 – (14th highest in MLB)

Contracts

Paul Goldschmidt: 5 years, $130 million – signed March 2019

Matt Carpenter: 2 years, $39 million – expires after 2022 season

Dexter Fowler: 5 years, $82.5 million – expires after 2021 season

Dilemma: The Cardinals are unwilling to spend despite having a modest payroll and having reached the postseason a year ago.

The St. Louis Cardinals might compare offseason spending to pulling teeth. For some reason, they don’t like to pay free agents or to make trades. But they’re not going to enhance their chances at a championship unless they begin to embrace such enticing tactics.

All that’s leaked from Cardinals camp this offseason is that they’re unsure whether or not to re-sign catcher Yadier Molina. They’ve hardly been “in” on a free agent or rumored as a trade prospect.

Are we missing something, or should the Cards be searching diligently for a couple of dynamite bats?

They finished fifth in the National League in 2020 with a 3.86 starters’ ERA and fourth with a 4.00 bullpen ERA. St. Louis was also one of the better defensive clubs in MLB.

The offense was their sole affliction, yet they haven’t expressed any intentions of scanning for help in that area. Free agents such as George Springer, J.T. Realmuto, Marcus Semien, and Justin Turner appear to be glaring fits. Still, the Cardinals keep quiet.

The front office can sit on its hands and conquer a dilapidated NL Central, but the team is stunting its growth by remaining unchanged.

How can the Cardinals flee no man’s land? Find the zeal to sign an impactful free agent bat or two. That’s all it will take for them to become legitimate contenders.

Milwaukee Brewers

Payroll

$64,901,626 – (20th in MLB)

Contracts

Christian Yelich: 7 years, $188.5 million – signed in March 2020

Lorenzo Cain: 5 years, $80 million – expires after 2022 season

Dilemma: The Brewers are playoff capable; however, they’re far off the pace of NL powerhouses such as the Dodgers and Padres. They also have a farm system in desperate need of resuscitation.

Unlike their divisional foes from St. Louis, the Milwaukee Brewers have reason to pause and assess this offseason. They’re good enough to keep pushing for the playoffs, but do they have the personnel to make a run at a title? This question marks the fine line between buying and selling.

Milwaukee has laid low to this point. They’ve chosen to hold on to closer Josh Hader and center fielder Lorenzo Cain, plausibly their top two trade assets. At the same time, they haven’t dabbled in the free-agent market.

Truthfully, no man’s land is a justifiable environment for the Brew Crew. There is no reason for their front office to rush any decisions regarding their present or future.

The Brewers can let the first half of the 2021 season play its course, then determine whether it’s best to buy or sell come July. They won’t commit to a full rebuild with Yelich in his prime, though they could tentatively reset by dealing Josh Hader at the trade deadline for a pair of major league-ready prospects.

Colorado Rockies

Payroll

$124,208,333 – (11th highest in MLB)

Contracts

Nolan Arenado: 8 years, $260 million – signed February 2019

Charlie Blackmon: 6 years, $108 million – player options in 2022 and 2023

Ian Desmond: 5 years, $70 million – club option in 2022

Trevor Story: 2 years, $27.5 million – expires after 2021 season

Dilemma: The Rockies have loads of money in play, but they’re not winning games. They must decide whether to stick with their high-dollar players, and, if so, for how long.

The Arenado, Blackmon, Story era can only last for so long. Story will become a free agent at the end of this year, and both Blackmon and Arenado can opt-out of their contracts as early as 2022.

Colorado does and always has lacked the pitching to make the extraordinary contributions of its three mega-talents worth the while. It’s time to retire their elite offensive core, allowing a new focus on vitalizing their 29th-ranked farm system (according to Bleacher Report).

It’s time for the Rockies to rebuild.

The good news is they have the perfect players to swap for prospects. There’s long been a line of teams wrapped around the corner to acquire Arenado, who’s earned the lofty title of a “Franchise Player.” His contract is intimidating, but it won’t prevent a favorable return as long as the Rockies are willing to consume some of it.

Teams prioritize having a formidable shortstop in place at the start of the regular season. As such, there’s surely a current market for Trevor Story. Though, if Colorado can’t trade him by spring training, they can try again before the July 31st trade deadline.

How can the Rockies flee no man’s land? Trade Nolan Arenado, Trevor Story, and any other big leaguers that can ignite a youth movement. Then let the rebuild unfold.