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Award Time: So, here’s a quick look at those players who will be filling their pockets with cash, after winning the 2020 individual awards.

AL Reliever of the Year – Sook-Jo Oh – Mariners, 4-6 record, 35 saves, 1.99 ERA
NL Reliever of the Year – RJ Hively – Diamondbacks – 4-2 in 67 games, 2.00 ERA, 13,3 K/9

AL Rookie of the Year – Luis Cossio (LF) Indians – 21 HR’s, 91 RBI’s, .274 avg, 3.5 WAR
NL Rookie of the Year – Nefttali Soto (1B) Pirates – 39 HR’s, 109 RBI’s, .271 avg, 4.2 WAR. And what a story! Spending most of his career in the minors, then six years in Japan, and then at the age of 31, winning the Rookie of the Year award. He becomes the second oldest ever, next to Sam Jethroe, who was 32 when he won it in 1950.

AL MVP – Jacob Brugman (RF) – A’s – 52 HR’s, 139 RBI’s, .351 avg
NL MVP – Christian Yelich (LF) – Marlins – 50 HR’s, 130 RBI’s .341 avg

AL Cy Young – Gio Gonzalez – Red Sox – 18-9, 2.25 ERA
NL Cy Young – Jose Fernandez – Marlins – 16-7, 2.20 ERA

Manager of the Year AL– Bob Melvin – A’s
Manager of the Year NL – Joe Girardi – Diamondbacks (remember, this is an OOTP universe)

November 21st, 2020 – Time for those famous three words heard around Major League Baseball. Free Agents File!! So the much anticipated day has arrived! A time when teams on the brink of contending, can add the free agent or two that they believe will take them over the top. Or those struggling teams who need to add 4 or 5 players to get back to respectability. And then there are the Expos! A team that currently has zero players on their roster.

So, there are some usual suspects that GM’s around the league new would file. Here’s some of them and what most experts expect they will at the minimum get paid!
Anthony Rendon – 24.5M
Carlos Correa - 36M
Stephen Strasburg – 25.5M
Bryce Harper – 30M
Mike Moustakis – 22M

Before I get into what free agents we’re looking at, or we bid on, I like to share with you what I presented to the Expos owner during my interviewing process on my philosophy of building a Major League Baseball team.

There are many steps involved in building a championship franchise. *Having a plan is the key. Those teams that are successful have a way that they do things and a philosophy in place.

Foundation: The key to any successful baseball team is having a foundation in place. That means building a solid base in the minor leagues that continually supplies the major league team with a stream of quality players, both position players and pitchers.

It also means not only drafting and scouting players, but getting the most out of their ability, and utilizing them to their strengths to become the best possible player they can be.

You have to be able to develop them and you have to be able to develop stars. That will keep your costs down on the major league roster and is the only way to build a successful team for the long-term year in and year out. Now obviously, with the Expos, that will take some time. We need to get players at the major league level immediately, and then find those younger players that will get “seasoned” in the minors, and will be able to contribute sometime down the road!

Also, I look at the Expos through Five Important Phases:

1. Free Agency – Despite the Saputo family being billionaires, the Expos have a tighter than normal budget, compared to teams like the Red Sox, Yankees, or Dodgers with seemingly unlimited funds. So, that means making smart choices, and the old saying “the best bang for your buck”. Get a good mix of several veteran players, some solid utility players, and sprinkle in some young and hungry players. Also, will be looking at minor league free agents, that could help the ballclub.

2. Expansion Draft – My Assistant GM, my Scouting Director, our Manager, and myself, don’t really expect to find stars here. But what we feel we can find is some decent, young talent, and possibly a veteran with not the best contract, but if he performs well early, could be worth something on the trade market.

3. Rule V Draft – Can certainly be a place where you find that “diamond in the rough.” Shane Victorino certainly comes to mind with the Phillies, and R.A Dickey with the Mariners in 2007.

4. Free Agency Revisited – After the initial “hoopla” of the big free agents signing on, there’s a time after the Winter Meetings, and even into the New Year, where you can find some “bargain” deals with players who hadn’t had an offer yet, were overvalued by themselves/agent, or somehow went totally under the radar/had a personal issue.

5. Waiver Wire – I’ll be scouring this every morning, first thing. You can get a decent player on “the wire” at times, and I have a feeling we’ll be claiming our share over the course of this season!