The 2022 Major League Baseball season officially ended Saturday night when the Houston Astros beat the Philadelphia Phillies in six games to win the World Series.
The 2022 offseason officially began just hours later, when, at 9 a.m. Sunday, more than 130 players automatically became free agents.
Here's a look at the upcoming week or so and some important deadlines and milestones;
TODAY: In addition to all the players who graduated to free agency, a few more joined the list Monday, including shortstop Xander Bogaerts.
Bogaerts wasn't a free agent in the conventional sense, but chose to exercise an opt-out in a contract he signed in 2019 and which went into effect in 2020. Bogaerts had three years and $60 million remaining on his deal, but chose to opt-out Monday, enabling him to become a free agent.
That move was a mere formality, as it's long been expected that Bogaerts would take the opportunity to opt-out. The Red Sox, including ownership, met with Bogaerts twice in late September and early October to express their desire to re-sign him and have him finish his career with the Red Sox, though at the time, no new formal offers were made.
It's uncertain whether the Red Sox made another proposal since the end of the regular season. In all likelihood, they viewed that as futile, since players mere weeks away from free agency are almost always compelled to follow through and experience the chance to listen to what other teams might offer. That the Red Sox apparently didn't make one more attempt to dissuade him from opt-out should not be interpreted as an unwillingness to spend to retain Bogaerts.
Now, however, they'll have to contend with the marketplace and perhaps need to outbid other teams' offers in order to retain Bogaerts.
Additionally, the Boston Globe reported Monday that the Sox don't intend to exercise their mutual option for outfielder Tommy Pham, acquired at the trade deadline. As such, Pham, too, is now a free agent and gets a $1.5 million-buyout from the Sox.
Other Red Sox players who already qualified for free agency: Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha, Rich Hill, J.D. Martinez and Matt Strahm.
TUESDAY: GM Meetings get underway in Las Vegas.
These meetings traditionally serve as a precursor to the bigger -- and more eventful -- winter meetings, which will get underway in San Diego next month.
Executives often lay the groundwork for some potential trades at the GM Meetings, or begin outreach to the representatives who serve as agents for free-agent players.
It's rare that anything concrete happens at the GM Meetings, though there are occasionally exceptions that rule.
The Sox will be represented by chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom and GM Brian O'Halloran.
Executives will begin arriving Monday night, with the meetings getting underway Tuesday and running through Thursday noon.
THURSDAY: Qualifying offers announced; team options deadline.
On Thursday, the Red Sox must make a determination as to which -- if any --of their own free agents will receive a qualifying offer.
This year, the QO is worth $19.6 million. If a player accepts the qualifying offer, he is automatically bound to the team for the 2023 season. Teams and players are also free to negotiate a longer deal. Players have 10 days to accept or decline a QO. Should they decline, they remain free agents, but their signings will come with compensation attached to their former teams.
The Red Sox will definitely give a QO to Bogaerts. If he signs elsewhere, they'll get an extra pick following the fourth round in next summer's amateur draft.
The team will not give a QO to Strahm, since that would represent an enormous overpay for a reliever who made $3 million, or to Pham.
That leaves three others -- Martinez, Eovaldi and Wacha.
Best educated guess: a QO for Eovaldi, but not for either Martinez or Wacha.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox have one meaningful team option for starter James Paxton, which calls for two years and $26 million.
That's a significant commitment for someone who pitched less than an inning on a rehab assignment following Tommy John surgery the previous year. The Sox paid $6 million to Paxton this season and got nothing out of that investment, so there's a school of thought that they want to see this through.
They could also pick up the option and trade him elsewhere. Or, they could decline it all together, as I would expect them to do.
TUESDAY, NOV. 15: Rule 5 Protection Date.
In a week or so, the Red Sox must finalize their 40-man roster in anticipation of the Rule 5 draft, which takes place on the final day of the Winter Meetings.
The Red Sox will need to make room for a handful of highly-regarded prospects. Wilyer Abreu, Wikelman Gonzalez, David Hamilton, Chris Murphy, Ceddanne Rafaela, Stephen Scott, Thaddeus Ward and others head the list of players who would need protection.
Currently, the Red Sox 40-man roster is officially at 39, but that number will be reduced in the days ahead as the team's eligible free agents are officially removed from the roster, freeing up necessary space.
FRIDAY, NOV. 18: Non-tender deadline.
On this date, the Red Sox must decide whether to officially give contracts to all players on their 40-man roster not already signed for next year.
For the players with fewer than three full years of major league service time, this will be a no-brainer. Players who lack arbitration eligibility are paid the minimum salary or slightly above it for their first few years.
For players eligible for the salary arbitration process, there exists the opportunity to make more significant money. In most cases, this will be the cost of doing business to retain the likes of valuable players such as Rafael Devers, Alex Verdugo, Nick Pivetta and others.
Some, however, might not be deemed valuable enough to tender contracts to, a group that includes Ryan Brasier, Yu Chang and Josh Taylor.
It's possible the Red Sox could non-tender some of those players -- as they did with Brasier last winter -- and sign them to negotiated deals at less than their projected arbitration number.