I don't think this is a 'test the waters for Ball as the next GM' kind of piece. Ball's name pops up regularly, but nobody has really put the pieces on how he does his job. It's a good piece for this time of year. The reason I don't see Ball as GM is that while he is a excellent negotiator, GM really requires talent evaluation and projecting and nothing in this article gives me a sense that those are strong points with him. He could probably do ok by relying totally on the scouting departments, but the top people there often get poached.