While most MLB clubs will focus on SIERA, WHIP and FIP with their starting pitcher acquisitions this offseason, the Atlanta Braves are taking a hard tilt toward AARP.

Barely a week into the hot stove season, the Braves have made two pre-emptive strikes to fortify their rotation: On Thursday, they signed 42-year-old R.A. Dickey to a one-year, guaranteed $8 million deal with a club option for 2018. And they'll add a fellow cardigan-sweater-wearing, "Antiques Road Show"-watching devotee to the mix when 43-year-old Bartolo Colon completes his physical exam and agrees to a guaranteed $12.5 million deal.

As teams forage for opportunities amid a woeful free-agent market, the Braves' early flurry makes two things abundantly clear: (1) They were intent on finding protective cover for a young, developing pitching staff; and (2) they think they're closer to fielding a winning team in 2017 than others do.

The Braves finished last in the National League East at 68-93, but they won 12 of their last 14 games, 20 of their last 30 and 24 of their last 38 after bottoming out at 45-79 on Aug. 21. The performance was encouraging enough for president of baseball operations John Hart and general manager John Coppolella to resist the temptation to acquire a big-name manager, instead opting to bring back Brian Snitker on a one-year deal with a club option for 2018.

The Braves made a $20.5 million investment in aging starters R.A. Dickey and Bartolo Colon to provide a young pitching staff with protective cover. USA TODAY Sports

First baseman Freddie Freeman established career highs with 34 homers and a .968 OPS and probably will finish just outside the top five in National League MVP voting. Ender Inciarte won a Gold Glove and logged 3.6 wins above replacement in center field. Shortstop Dansby Swanson looks like a player the Braves can build around, and Matt Kemp slugged .567 after the All-Star break. If Kemp can ramp up his conditioning this offseason and be less of a defensive liability in 2017, so much the better.

Best of all, Atlanta's farm system is deep and on the rise. But the waves of young pitchers need time to develop, and the acquisitions of Dickey and Colon give the Braves latitude to exercise patience from the big league roster down the line.

Colon always looks as if he's one pulled muscle away from retirement, but the man known as "Big Sexy" went 15-8 with a 3.43 ERA for the New York Mets in 2016 and is working on a streak of four straight seasons with at least 190 innings. According to FanGraphs, he threw his 87.9 mph fastball 89.5 percent of the time in '16. If all he does is teach Julio Teheran, Mike Foltynewicz, Matt Wisler and Atlanta's young pitchers the value of a well-placed heater, he'll earn a substantial chunk of his money.

It's worth noting that Hart was general manager in Cleveland when the Indians signed Colon as a 20-year-old amateur free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 1993. Hart was gone by the time the Cleveland Indians traded Colon to Montreal for a package that included Cliff Lee, Grady Sizemore and Brandon Phillips in 2002, but now the two are reunited as the Braves prepare to make the move from Turner Field to SunTrust Park.

Dickey's 2016 season ended in disappointment when he was left off the Toronto Blue Jays' postseason rotation, but he handled the situation with class and never caused a ripple of discord in the clubhouse. From 2011 to 2015, Dickey ranked fourth in the majors behind James Shields, Clayton Kershaw and Felix Hernandez with 1,097 innings pitched. Dickey should benefit from a return to the National League, where he won 2012 Cy Young honors with the Mets.

If the Braves can pick up where they left off in September, opportunity awaits in the NL East. The Washington Nationals are a formidable team. But the Philadelphia Phillies are rebuilding, the Miami Marlins are reeling from the loss of Jose Fernandez, and Noah Syndergaard is the only member of the Mets' young rotation who'll show up at spring training without some sort of medical issue.

While other teams with starting pitching issues debate whether to pursue Chris Sale or Sonny Gray in trades or invest in multiyear deals for Rich Hill and Ivan Nova, the Braves settled on a strategy and pounced. They're committed to $20.5 million guaranteed for Colon and Dickey next season, and nothing more.

Maybe the plan works out, maybe it doesn't. But it's certainly defensible. And if you have a soft spot for aging guys who practice their craft with imagination and flair, it should be a heck of a lot of fun to watch.