MLB Offseason 'Winners' Have Seen Mixed Results On Field In Recent Years
(CBS) In an interview on 670 The Score's Inside the Clubhouse over the weekend, Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein expressed wariness about buying into the hype of a big offseason after his team's signings of Jason Heyward, Ben Zobrist and John Lackey. After all, Epstein pointed out, the teams that are tabbed as offseason "winners" were often bad previously or underachieve moving forward anyway.
"It can be uncomfortable to get all the attention this time of year," Epstein said. "Usually the teams that get praised for what they do in December have time on their hands the next October. We are going to ignore all of that and feel confident we did the right thing for the club."
While the Cubs' situation is certainly different in some regards -- the foundation of talented youth is there, and success was already had in 2015 -- Epstein's words served as a reminder to take nothing for granted on paper.
Recent history sheds light on Epstein's assessment. Over the last three years, teams that made some of the most high-profile additions have had a mixed bag of results, with some continuing to greatly underachieve.
Here's a glimpse at some of the teams with high-profile acquisitions in recent years.
2014 offseason-2015 season
White Sox -- added Jeff Samardzija, Melky Cabrera, David Robertson and Adam LaRoche
2014 record: 73-89
2015 record: 76-86
Padres -- added James Shields, Justin Upton and Craig Kimbrel
2014 record: 77-85
2015 record: 74-88
Nationals -- added Max Scherzer
2014 record: 96-66
2015 record: 83-79
Red Sox -- added Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval
2014 record: 71-91
2015 record: 78-84
Cubs -- added Jon Lester (and manager Joe Maddon, if you want to think outside the box)
2014 record: 73-89
2015 record: 97-65
2013 offseason-2014 season
Orioles -- added Ubaldo Jimenez and Nelson Cruz
2013 record: 85-77
2014 record: 96-66
Yankees -- added Carlos Beltran, Brian McCann and Jacoby Ellsbury
2013 record: 85-77
2014 record: 84-78
Mariners -- added Robinson Cano, Corey Hart and Logan Morrison and Fernando Rodney
2013 record: 71-91
2014 record: 87-75
Rangers -- added Shin-Soo Choo and Prince Fielder
2013 record: 91-72
2014 record: 67-95
2012 offseason-2013 season
Nationals -- added Dan Haren, Denard Span and Rafael Soriano
2012 record: 98-64
2013 record: 86-76
Blue Jays -- added Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson and Mark Buerhle
2012 record: 73-89
2013 record: 74-88
Angels -- added Josh Hamilton and Ryan Madson
2012 record: 89-73
2013 record: 78-84
