Tony DeMarco

The World Series ending on Nov. 4 means a more compact offseason. Less than a week after the season’s final pitch was thrown by Mariano Rivera, general managers convened in a Chicago hotel to do nothing about instant replay, but did stoke the hot stove.

So here are some unfolding story lines for the offseason as the free-agent signing period looms:

It’s when, not if, Roy Halladay leaves the Jays
Halladay wants to win now, and the chances of the Blue Jays doing that anytime soon are slim at best in the AL East — despite what new/old president Paul Beeston thinks.

So for both sides, the best thing is to make a deal this offseason rather than take it to the July 31 trade deadline. But the Jays might not want to send a “rebuilding mode” message to fans by dealing Halladay.

Former general manager J.P. Ricciardi failed to pull the trigger last July, but new guy Alex Anthopoulos already has addressed the obvious — Halladay’s not coming back after 2010. Since the Jays can get more this winter than they will be able to get at the trade deadline, why not just do it now?

There are only a handful of possibilities — the Dodgers, Angels (if John Lackey goes elsewhere as expected), Red Sox and Yankees (if Andy Pettitte retires), and maybe a wild card or two.

The biggest need lies in Los Angeles, where the Dodgers were exposed as ace-less during the playoffs, and fell short against the Phillies.

Ownership issues aside, GM Ned Colletti — who got an extension before the McCourts' marriage blew up — knows this team must add a No. 1 starter to get to a World Series.

And with Manny Ramirez and Joe Torre in the final years of their contracts, there’s no better time than now to surrender Chad Billingsley plus a few prospects. The rest of the roster is too talented to waste on another marginal rotation.

The Angels never make a big deal, even though they possess the pieces to make it happen. But maybe their continued playoff failures will change organization philosophy enough to take a chance on one of the game’s truly great No. 1 starters. It’s hard to win a pennant without one, as the Angels keep learning the hard way.

The Yankees and Red Sox can make a Halladay deal happen because both have quality young big-league pitching and enough position-player prospects. Anthopoulos also appears more willing than Ricciardi to deal within the division.

The Phillies are out after acquiring Cliff Lee, and their unwillingness to deal Cole Hamels.

Story remains the same for Carl Crawford
The Ray can become a free agent after the 2010 season, and as much as both sides are saying they’d like to sign another long-term deal, circumstances dictate otherwise.

Crawford is one of the game’s premier players — the complete package of power, speed and defense — at the height of his career.

He already gave away two years of free agency in signing his current contract, and no matter where the market goes in this down economy, Crawford is at least worth something in the four/five-year, $60-75 million range. Realistically, that’s too much for the Rays to pay; too much of their payroll in the $50-60-million range going to one player.

But since the Rays figure to be a contender again in 2010, the likeliest chain of events is this: Unless somebody makes them an offer they can’t refuse this winter, they head into next season with Crawford on the roster.

If they fall out of contention early enough, he’s gone before the trade deadline. If they stay in the race and want to take the chance of keeping Crawford around to help make a playoff push, they would have to settle for the two draft choices when he leaves in free agency after 2010.

Saving money
Three more teams looking to dump salary due to economic constraints are the Reds, Royals and Tigers, so that opens up a handful of possibilities involving Brandon Phillips, Bronson Arroyo, Aaron Harang, Gil Meche, Mike Jacobs, Jose Guillen, Alberto Callaspo, Curtis Granderson, Edwin Jackson, Placido Polanco and Magglio Ordonez.

Braves looking to deal pitching
The Braves are looking to make a significant pitcher-for-hitter deal. The luxury of having six quality starters — Javier Vazquez, Jair Jurrjens, Derek Lowe, Tim Hudson, Tommy Hanson and Kenshin Kawakami — makes this possible. They wouldn’t mind dealing Lowe and the $45 million left on his deal, but Vazquez is a likelier possibility. And it’s necessary because the Braves clearly needed another threat to a lineup that at some point next season could get a huge boost from top outfield prospect Jason Heyward.

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