The problem is, they made the playoffs with a pretty small payroll, which maximized their profits. Baseball is a business and payroll is pure overhead. Keeping payroll low increases the bottom line. And the goal of every business is to make as much money as possible. So if young kids can play a position for $600 grand or so, why spend $20 to $30 million for the same position?
As for pitching? Last off-season, I wanted them to sign Matthew Boyd. He ended up with the Cubs at $30 million for 2 years, $15 million per season. And he was an All Star, helping lead the Cubbies into the playoffs. We gave Cobb $15 million for one year to vacation in Toledo.