The Tigers, intent on cutting payroll, came out of recent organizational meetings feeling that virtually everyone but Justin Verlander was available in a deal. Which means the Yankees could go get Curtis Granderson. Or that the Red Sox could put 26-year-old Miguel Cabrera on their short list (along with Adrian Gonzalez) of possible middle-of-the-order bats.

In Toronto, the best player who ever wore a Blue Jays uniform, Roy Halladay, is there for the taking. Cincinnati is making everyone available, with the possible exception of Joey Votto. The Cardinals say they’re reducing payroll. The Rays picked up Carl Crawford’s $10 million option, but the reality is they might deal him, because even that is too rich for them. Welcome to Houston, Brad Mills; now we’re cutting the payroll.

There’s more talk about cutting than ever.

But Scott Boras doesn’t buy it.

“We heard a lot last year about the impending doom of the economics of baseball, and they had another record year of revenues, $6 billion again this year, and the economy is better,’’ said the game’s most prominent agent. “So the real truth of baseball right now is a lot of teams are starting to identify their ownerships from the following perspective: that they have an ownership that’s going to pay off their debt by getting the revenue sharing and money they’re getting from central baseball - $80 million-$90 million a year - and they’re going to turn around and draw 1.5-2 million, make $40 or $50 a head. All of a sudden, they’re sitting there with $200 million in revenues and they’re spending $50 million, $60 million, $70 million on players. Those are obviously owners that are going to have to be looked at.’’

According to Boras, baseball revenues have increased from $1 billion to more than $6 billion since 1990.

“We’ve seen a number of teams that are just sitting back,’’ he said. “We have clubs who aren’t successful getting $80 million before they ever sell a ticket. The question is always going to be, in the end, what are they doing with that money? For most of them, they’re paying off their debt to purchase the franchise. So they become owners, debt-free, but they have not done a lot to contribute to the success of the game.

“The fans have to look at it and realize that kind of revenue is available. The other part of it is I think we’ve proven time and time again that investment in players produces revenue streams and success points for franchises. Even in an economy where many businesses are struggling, in our industry, as I said last year, we’ve been able to keep revenues at a record level.’’

Which is why Boras believes owners aren’t giving their fans much to root for.

“While that growth was going on - which is phenomenal growth - every offseason there were statements by teams that the industry was headed south,’’ he said. “Go back and look at the quotes and who’s making them. If I’m a fan, I really have to question it and look at the history of my franchise and the others and evaluate what commitment each franchise is making.

“Some are doing a good job of it. Some are making decisions going forward, and there are others basically using our industry as a method for acquiring hundreds of millions of dollars in assets on the backs of the industry.’’

Boras makes valid points, but the owners who are getting squeezed in their other businesses are worried that spending a lot of money in this economy probably isn’t good business.

So the logical conclusion is that this offseason may be like last offseason. John Lackey, Matt Holliday, Jason Bay, and maybe Chone Figgins will make good money, though a National League general manager said of Holliday, who stands to be the highest-paid free agent, “Won’t get what Mark Teixeira got. No chance. Lackey may get A.J. Burnett money, but I’m not even sure anyone would go that high.’’

The predicament the Tigers find themselves in is the most interesting, for they have been a big-market team with an owner always willing to spend to win. He tried to go all out with last year’s team, eating Gary Sheffield’s $14 million in spring training, allowing Magglio Ordonez to have his $18 million option kick in based on plate appearances. They spent big for Dontrelle Willis.

They are unlikely to retain free agent Placido Polanco, one of the best second basemen in the business. They may move Granderson to the Cubs, White Sox, or Yankees. Are they desperate enough to entertain a deal for Cabrera, who had an incident involving alcohol at the end of the season and who will be paid $20 million-$22 million a year between now and 2015?

“I think it’s going to be a market where you’ll see more trades,’’ said a longtime National League talent evaluator. “I think teams are going to sit back for a while and see if it goes like last year. If it does, then there’s going to be a lot of bargains.

“We also have to watch the list of non-tenders. There are going to be some pretty decent players from those lists. So if you’re a team looking at the bottom line, you might be able to pick up a very good player at under market. I think a lot of teams are going in that direction.’’

There will always be teams like the Yankees, Red Sox, and Mets, who will go after a player they desperately need and won’t be afraid to offer a big salary. Even teams like Seattle, Milwaukee, and San Francisco will be aggressive to make sure they don’t miss out on the players they want. But so many others will bottom-feed.

Boras also makes a good point that there are some teams content to make the playoffs two or three times over five or six years, teams that will never go the extra mile for the franchise player to put them over the top. He points out the Yankees were the one team that made the commitment last season, and they won a championship.

“But we’d rather be 29th or 30th,’’ Anthopoulos said. “We’re still finding ways to see if we can determine how to keep our pitchers healthy. I think we’ve done a good job as an organization developing them and bringing them up to the major leagues. Now we have to keep our guys healthy.’’

Anthopoulos’s biggest order of business will be fielding offers for Halladay, and there should be no shortage of suitors. “If we get the right package, we’ll make the trade,’’ he said at the recent GM meetings.

Asked if Halladay could be dealt within the division, Anthopoulos said, “It would be awfully narrow thinking of me to turn down the best offer because of the fact it came from within our division.

“Now, if we had strictly apples-and-apples offers for Halladay, one from Boston, one from another team, it would not be Boston. If we made a deal, we owe it to our fans to obtain the best deal possible.’’

As for his highest-priced player, Vernon Wells, Anthopoulos feels he will rebound and become the player everyone thought he would.

“Vernon wants to be the best he can be,’’ said the GM. “He’s got a lot of pride. He played hurt last year [left wrist] and he took a cortisone shot in spring training and took anti-inflammatories all season.’’

Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik did a tremendous job last offseason changing the culture of the franchise and bringing the Mariners back to respectability. Now he needs to take the next step. The first thing he did was re-sign Ken Griffey, not so much for what he can still do as a hitter, but for his leadership. Griffey’s signing does not preclude the Mariners from going out and getting another DH or power hitter, according to Zduriencik.

The Mariners are expected to make a push for Bay, who lives in the Seattle area, and add pitching, both in the rotation and the bullpen. Whether they can add two big-ticket items like Bay and Lackey remains to be seen.

“I think they’ve been one of the most aggressive organizations in the early going,’’ said an American League GM. “They aren’t as restricted with their budget like other organizations are, so they have a chance to do some things.’’

The Mariners are expected to make an offer to Hernandez this offseason in an effort to keep him for a long time. They also will likely make another attempt at Gonzalez, as they did at last season’s trading deadline.

2. Jason Varitek, C, Red Sox - He decided pretty quickly after the Sox declined his $5 million option that he was picking up his $3 million deal. However, there were 48 hours of a “let’s see if we can get some incentives changed’’ tango. The Sox feel Varitek will be a good backup catcher and will continue to help Victor Martinez. And no, the Sox will not strip the “C’’ off his jersey. The Sox might have considered Mark Wagner as their backup if Varitek had not returned.

3. Brad Ausmus, C, free agent - He’ll assess the market, and hasn’t ruled out a return to the Dodgers; he and Russell Martin meshed well last season. Ausmus lives in Southern California but has a house on Cape Cod. “I’ll just wait and see what might be available,’’ he said. “If not, I haven’t been able to enjoy that house on the Cape at all . . .’’ Asked whether he’d like to get right into coaching or managing, he said, “Not for a while. I’d like to spend time with the family if I do call it a career.’’

4. Holliday, LF, free agent - One of the most interesting things Boras said at the GM meetings was that he felt Holliday’s early-season difficulties with the A’s were due in large part to altering his swing in the offseason. His offseason hitting coach was Mark McGwire, who has been hired by the Cardinals. Some had thought that might be incentive for Holliday to stay in St. Louis, but maybe not after Boras’s comment. Those who watched Holliday in St. Louis were amazed by his strength and the fact that he could consistently hit balls into the upper deck in left field at Busch Stadium, which is something Albert Pujols did far less. Asked how many homers Holliday would hit at Fenway, a Cardinal official said, “Forty, easy.’’ An AL talent evaluator said Holliday was most vulnerable against a high, tight fastball at 94 miles per hour and faster. Who isn’t?

5. Hideki Matsui, DH, free agent - A couple of reports out of Japan indicated the Sox had interest in Matsui, but team officials have assured this correspondent they have none because there’s no place for him. Even Yankees GM Brian Cashman said that if they bring him back, it would be strictly as a DH.

6. Brian Sabean, GM, Giants - He has made a nice comeback in the post-Barry Bonds era but now must get at least two hitters to add to his lineup. Bay would seem ideal, but Sabean said, “We have to see what’s realistic for us. If we have indications that the player really has no intentions of being interested in us, we’re not going on a wild goose chase. We need two hitters. I think we need to improve our offense to be able to help our pitching staff, and that’s going to be our focus.’’ Bay and Holliday would certainly be in the mix.

7. Pedro Martinez, RHP, free agent - The Phillies continue their assessment on Martinez and the viability of a return. The issues: Full year vs. half year. Durability. Time needed between starts. Salary. The Phillies believe that if Martinez locates well, and has a strong differentiation among his fastball, changeup, and curve, that he can still pitch at a high level. With a thin free agent pitching market, Martinez will pitch somewhere if he wants to, but at the moment the Phillies haven’t decided how far they want to go with him.

8. Mike Lowell, 3B, Red Sox - There could be a late-developing market for Lowell if teams are convinced that his hip will improve enough to help his range. Lowell believes that will happen, based on conversations with doctors who told him he could concentrate on strengthening the labrum rather than just rehabbing it, as he did last offseason. The Sox would entertain dealing him only if they land Gonzalez and move Kevin Youkilis to third. At least three teams - the Phillies, Cardinals, and Giants - need a third baseman. Sabean helped sign Lowell for the Yankees years ago; the Phillies tried to sign him in free agency. The final $13 million on his contract could be an issue for the Cardinals.

9. B.J. Upton, CF, Rays - The Rays made the right decision trading Delmon Young and Brendan Harris to the Twins for Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett, so it isn’t far-fetched that Upton could go in a deal this offseason. A lot would depend on how the Rays feel about tying up Crawford and whether they felt they could get more in return for him than Upton.

Nick Cafardo can be reached at cafardo@globe.com.