Honestly, does the off-season even start until the Mariners and Rays make their annual winter trade? The two front offices are so eager to make deals, they typically don’t even bother waiting until Thanksgiving to get things done.
This year may be no exception as the Rays and the Mariners actually match up quite well on a few fronts. But perhaps most notably, the Rays have quite a bit of solid, controllable pitching, while the Mariners have the outfielders and catchers the Rays could be looking for.
The Rays also have a mountain of quality prospects they need to add to their 40-man roster, or potentially lose them to the Rule 5 draft, so moving players off the 40-man could be a major goal for Tampa this winter.