I enjoy most sports and enjoy writing. Some teams addressed specific needs by making huge moves, particularly the New York Mets and the New York Yankees.
Others were bound to their small market restraints, such as the Oakland A's, who dismantled their "Big Three" leaving only Barry Zito behind.
What will be the outcome after all of the dust settles? Who will be the winners from the 2004-05 off season?
Here are my top three winners.
1. New York Yankees
The Bronx Bombers improved their only weak spot from last year --starting pitching. After all, the best moves are the ones that not just get big name players, but the ones that improve problem areas from the previous season.
The Yankees, however, were able to achieve both of these feats by going out and getting the most intimidating pitcher in the game ? Randy Johnson.
Johnson is coming off of perhaps the best season in his career, despite being 41 years old. He posted a 2.60 ERA to go along with 290 strikeouts and 16wins.
On almost any other team in the league last year, he would have had a realistic shot at 25wins, but the Arizona Diamondbacks offered little support for their pitchers, as they had the fewest runs in the MLB last season.
The Yankees also added starting pitcher Jaret Wright from the Atlanta Braves and Carl Pavano from the Florida Marlins.
Wright won 15 games last year to go along with his low3.28 ERA, while Pavano won 18 games and almost cracked a sub-three 3.00 ERA (he had a 3.00).
2. New York Mets
The Mets went out this off season and nabbed perhaps the best all around player in the MLB in Carlos Beltran, and arguably still the best starting pitcher in Pedro Martinez.
While this may not quickly transform the Mets from last season's terrible 71-91 record, it does show that they are now headed in the right direction and are once again committed to winning at Shea Stadium.
The biggest problem they face is that they play in such a tough division, with the Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies and the Florida Marlins, who are all still better than the Mets.
3. Atlanta Braves
The Braves went out and made two huge moves that really turned into three huge moves for them. They acquired starting pitcher Tim Hudson from the A's, and dominating closer Dan Kolb from the Milwaukee Brewers.
Hudson, in five of his past six seasons, has a had an ERA lower than 4.00 and has won at least 11 games in each of those seasons, while being the ace of the "Big Three" out in Oakland.
Kolb posted a 2.98 ERA with the Brewers last season, and collected 39 saves, which was good enough for 11th place in the MLB for saves. These numbers are amazing considering his limited opportunity playing for one of the worst teams in Milwaukee where wins are always scarce.
The Kolb move really turned heads in Atlanta because it now means the return of John Smoltz to the starting rotation this season. Smoltz could help this starting rotation get back the prestige it once had in the ?90, when it was the best staff in the league.