NL Central update: Cardinals have been active in effort to upgrade pitching staff
Has Jed Hoyer's vision of a powerhouse Cubs team blurred into oblivion?
It's still too early to say, but the off-season has been quiet thus far. Eerily quiet.
After Hoyer, the Cubs' president of baseball operations, introduced Craig Counsell as the club's new manager in early November, he gushed about the franchise's firm footing.
"I'm excited about where we are as an organization,” Hoyer said. “We have a really good core of players in the major leagues, I think we've got a really good farm system. I think where we are from a financial standpoint is exciting. We've all worked really hard to put ourselves in that position after making some really hard decisions.
"This doesn't signal we're going to be irresponsible this off-season if there aren't the right transactions. But certainly, the goal is to continue the trajectory we're on and really push that forward."
So far, there's been no push from the Cubs. No shove.
As the calendar prepares to flip to 2024, the Cubs are the only MLB team that has yet to sign a free agent or acquire a major-league player in a trade this off-season.
It's been Counsell and his record-setting $40 million contract and nothing else.
There's still time to bring back Cody Bellinger, deal for a starting pitcher like Shane Bieber or Dylan Cease and sign slugging first baseman Rhys Hoskins, but the ticking clock is getting louder.
Let's take a look at how the rest of the NL Central is faring:
St. Louis
After finishing last in the division for the first time in 33 years and posting the highest team ERA in franchise history, the Cardinals moved fast when free agency opened.
They signed three starting pitchers, Sonny Gray, Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn, but there are still some big holes in the lineup.
St. Louis hopes to beef up its bullpen with an early December trade that brought in Nick Robertson and Victor Santos and sent injury-prone outfielder Tyler O'Neill to the Red Sox.
Milwaukee
At this point, call the Brewers favorites to finish first in the NL Central for the second straight season.
That doesn't mean all is well in Milwaukee. In a stunning move, Counsell left his hometown team and is now managing the rival Cubs.
The rotation is still a strength, but there's a very real chance ace starter Corbin Burnes gets traded before he reaches free agency at the end of the 2024 season.
In a cost-cutting move, the Brewers traded starter Adrian Houser and outfielder Tyrone Taylor to the Mets for a minor-league pitcher.
There are holes to fill in the infield, but Milwaukee did spend big on outfielder Jackson Chourio, signing their top prospect to an eight-year, $82 million contract.
Cincinnati
After a brilliant 17-year run, Joey Votto's time with the Reds came to an end at the conclusion of last season.
Cincinnati will survive. Injuries limited Votto to 65 games last season but the Reds still finished a surprising 82-80.
They've added Nick Martinez to the rotation and Emilio Pagan to the bullpen and also signed third baseman Jeimer Candelario to a three-year, $45 million contract.
Pittsburgh
The Pirates haven't made the playoffs since 2015, but optimism is warming a bit for the upcoming season.
Andrew McCutchen was a star player for Pittsburgh when it made three straight trips to the postseason (2013-15). Now 37 and back with the Pirates on a one-year contract, he’s looking forward to the upcoming season.
“I feel like the Pirates have been under this window of development and rebuild,” McCutchen said. “I think we're in a place now where that's out the window.”
Pittsburgh addressed its biggest weakness, the starting rotation, by signing Marco Gonzales and Martin Perez. Newcomers Rowdy Tellez and Edward Olivares should help the offense.