The Boston Globe's Dan Shaughnessy noted there is some "impatience on the part of the fans" that the Red Sox have not made a bigger splash so far during the offseason and that the team has "really fallen off the radar" since the end of the '17 campaign. He said, "It's been a quiet winter here like in most baseball markets, outside the Yankees of course." Shaughnessy added, "We've got teams doing really well here. The Patriots are probably on their way to the Super Bowl. The Celtics are the top seed (in the Eastern Conference) right now. The Bruins are actually hot" ("Hot Stove," MLB Network, 1/8).
WAKING FROM A WINTER SLUMBER? In N.Y., John Harper noted the Mets could be "re-calculating their offseason strategy" and see the need for a "splashy move if they want to sell tickets or simply appease" their fan base. Mets fans have been upset since GM Sandy Alderson "said payroll was being reduced" this season. Bringing back free agent RF Jay Bruce "might be the safest bet," but if the team is "figuring PR into any big move, as they often do," signing either free agent 3B Mike Moustakas or trading for Pirates CF Andrew McCutchen "would move the needle for the fans more than Bruce" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 1/7).
CAPTAIN OF INDUSTRY: In Miami, Barry Jackson reported Marlins CEO Derek Jeter "eventually will make back his modest financial investment in the team merely though the salary he is being paid." He also could be paid "substantially more" than his annual $5M salary through a series of bonuses "if the team makes a profit" (MIAMI HERALD, 1/6).
