Hall of Famer Lee MacPhail never coveted the spotlight, but he certainly knew how to perform under baseball’s brightest glare.

Sometime in the next couple of months, we’ll come up with a list of off-season winners and losers. We do this every single year even though our track record on such things is — how can I put this delicately — lousy.

The General Managers Meetings ended Friday morning on a particularly academic note, with Cal Tech professor in physics Len Mlodinow discussing the random nature of events in life and baseball.

The Rockies brought up then-prospect first baseman Todd Helton from Triple-A in 1997, and subtly made sure then-veteran shortstop Walt Weiss would teach him the ropes.

The possibility of trading R.A. Dickey firmly lodged into the Mets’ consciousness months ago, even as Dickey was in the midst of his best season as a professional. But at the General Managers Meetings this week in California, it began dominating the landscape of New York’s offseason.

After a great career in the Major Leagues, shortstop Edgar Renteria is hoping to help lead the Colombia team to the World Baseball Classic.

The Nationals made it official on Saturday, announcing that Davey Johnson will manage the team in 2013. Following the conclusion of the season, Johnson plans to call it a career as a manager and become a team consultant in 2014.

Derrick Hall reiterated that his club is not looking to trade right-hander Trevor Bauer this winter, and the D-backs’ president added that he has been impressed with the rookie’s growth this offseason.

The Mariners’ Jack Zduriencik made the customary rounds at this week’s General Managers Meetings at the Hyatt Regency Indian Wells, touching all the bases the way he hopes his hitters will with more frequency in 2013.

General manager Ned Colletti left one meeting Friday and headed for another, as the General Managers Meetings ended in the desert and the Dodgers’ organizational meetings start next week in Los Angeles.

The Indians are currently dealing with a balancing act: finding ways to fill their needs for next season while keeping an eye on the club’s long-term plan. It is a situation that has made trades an ideal way to address various issues.

B.J. Upton has declined the Rays’ one-year, $13.3 million qualifying offer to remain with the team, and it is unlikely the two sides will engage in contract negotiations.

Hiroki Kuroda, Rafael Soriano and Nick Swisher each rejected their qualifying offers from the Yankees.

Lee MacPhail, soft-spoken, steadfast, and above all, reasonable, was the primary representative of the second generation of a family that has served the game since the 1930s and remains involved. He died Thursday at age 95 in Delray Beach, Fla., his home in recent years.

Josh Hamilton, who is looking for a long-term contract worth $20-25 million annually, has turned down the Rangers’ qualifying offer of $13.3 million.

Mariano Rivera flashed his smooth, iconic form as he lobbed the baseballs toward a protected cameraman, showing no ill effects from a torn right anterior cruciate ligament, an injury that truncated his season in May.

Do you want to know who will walk away with the Baseball Writers’ Association of America hardware next week? Look no further.