CARLSBAD, Calif. — The Winter Meetings get most of the offseason hype in Major League Baseball.
Held during the second week of December, the event is the highlight of the sport's winter calendar and usually is highlighted by a major free-agent signing or a blockbuster trade. Everyone who is anyone in baseball attends, and with this year's meetings in Las Vegas from Dec. 10-13, you can be sure the turnout will be large.
However, a lot of the groundwork for the deals that occur next month will be laid during the General Managers' Meetings that begin Tuesday and run through Thursday morning. GMs from 29 of the 30 teams will be on hand at the Omni La Coast Resort and Spa; the Orioles are still looking for a new head of baseball operations.
The GM Meetings are much smaller and informal than the Winter Meetings. Thus, the executives get a chance to interact in a relaxed atmosphere.
The Pirates' Neal Huntington is almost certain to have initial trade talks this week. The Pirates are looking for a shortstop — I analyzed the state of the Pirates middle infield last week and mentioned a few possible free agents that would fit, both there and in last week's Friday Insider — but they also would like to add an outfielder.
A perfect fit would be someone who could play right field while Gregory Polanco recovers from shoulder surgery, then move into a bench role once he gets healthy. Polanco could be back as soon as mid-April but also could be out until mid-June.
Even better would be if the outfielder would be ready to move into the starting lineup in 2020. Gold Glove left fielder Corey Dickerson can become a free agent at the end of next season.
Three outfielders who could be available this offseason are the Padres' Hunter Renfroe, the Brewers' Domingo Santana and the Phillies' Nick Williams. The Pirates could easily fit them into their payroll, as none of the trio is eligible for arbitration until after the 2019 season, and all would make around the $555,000 minimum salary next year.
Renfroe and Santana, 26, could provide the Pirates with the power bat they desire after finishing 25th in the major leagues with 157 home runs this year. Renfroe hit .248/.302/.504 with 26 homers in 117 games in 2018. Though Santana batted just .268/.328/.412 with five homers in 85 games, he posted a 30-home run, 15-stolen base season in 2017.
The 25-year-old Williams has intriguing talent but has yet to gain consistency in the major leagues. This year, he had a .256/.324/.425 line, hitting 17 homers in 140 games.
More of a long shot would be veteran Dexter Fowler, and the Pirates would only agree to trade for him if the Cardinals assume almost all of the $49.5 million remaining on his five-year, $82.5-million contract. The 32-year-old would be a buy-low candidate after hitting a measly .180/.278/.298 with eight home runs in 90 games.