The offseason has more or less come to a close at this point. While a handful of players remain available in free agency and there’s always a chance of a surprise trade or two throughout Spring Training, the vast majority of the heavy lifting has been done. As Spring Training begins, it’s worth checking in on what teams around the league did this winter to see which club had the strongest offseason. A look at a few of the candidates:
Baltimore Orioles
After a disastrous 2025 season that saw the club fall to the basement of the American League, the Orioles have been very busy in their efforts to turn things around. A rotation that struggled to stay above water last year saw the return of
Zach Eflin as well as the additions of both
Shane Baz and
Chris Bassitt. Those additions may not have included the front-of-the-rotation ace the Orioles were widely expected to pursue, but the club was aggressive elsewhere on the roster.
Ryan Helsley was brought in to close while
Felix Bautista is injured, and the club swung a deal for
Taylor Ward to help round out their outfield. By far the biggest addition of the winter, however, was slugger
Pete Alonso, who signed a five-year, $155MM contract. Alonso adds a legitimate 40-homer threat to the middle of a lineup that struggled to generate much offense outside of
Gunnar Henderson last year and was heavily slanted toward lefty hitters.
Chicago Cubs
It’s rare that a team would be in this conversation after losing the offseason’s top-ranked free agent, but there’s a lot to like about the 2026 Cubs even after bidding farewell to
Kyle Tucker.
Alex Bregman, signed to a five-year, $175MM deal, can’t be expected to be the same offensive force as peak-level Tucker, but he makes up for that by helping to complete what’s arguably become the best defensive infield in baseball alongside
Dansby Swanson,
Nico Hoerner, and
Michael Busch. The move pushes
Matt Shaw into a utility role, where he can serve as protection against injury for the club while also potentially sharing time with fellow youngster
Moises Ballesteros at DH. The addition of Bregman was complemented by the decision to swing a trade for high-upside righty
Edward Cabrera in the rotation. That likely pushes swingman
Colin Rea back into a bullpen that’s been rebuilt with
Phil Maton,
Hunter Harvey, and
Hoby Milner after losing
Brad Keller,
Andrew Kittredge, and
Drew Pomeranz back in November.
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers’ offseason hasn’t been an exceptionally busy one, but the few moves they wound up making could prove to be the most impactful of any team this winter. They kicked off their offseason by poaching star closer
Edwin Diaz away from the Mets, but their biggest splash was the addition of Tucker to their outfield. Diaz and Tucker are both All-Stars with among the highest ceilings in the game at their respective positions. Adding both to an already star-studded roster, the Dodgers managed to address the 2025 team’s biggest weaknesses: a lackluster outfield and a leaky bullpen. They also extended
Max Muncy on an affordable one-year deal and reunited with
Kiké Hernandez and
Evan Phillips. After back-to-back World Series championships, the Dodgers look even better headed into 2026 despite their relatively low volume of transactions.
New York Mets
While the Dodgers mostly kept their 2025 team intact for 2026 with just a few additions, the Mets went in the opposite direction with a complete roster overhaul. Out went Alonso, Diaz,
Brandon Nimmo, and
Jeff McNeil. Replacing them is a host of talent ranging from new staff ace
Freddy Peralta to relievers
Devin Williams and
Luke Weaver on the pitching side, and a cluster of position players headlined by star infielder
Bo Bichette. In addition to Bichette, who’ll move to third base alongside shortstop
Francisco Lindor, the team brought in
Marcus Semien to handle the keystone,
Jorge Polanco to cover first base, and
Luis Robert Jr. to work in center field. It’s a busy offseason that completely changed the look of the team that failed to make the playoffs last year, though it remains to be seen if this team will better support Lindor and
Juan Soto in their pursuit of a World Series championship.
Toronto Blue Jays
The Blue Jays finished just shy of a World Series championship last year, and this winter they acted like a team that wanted to leave no stone unturned in their efforts to close the gap. A new-look rotation added
Dylan Cease at the front and
Cody Ponce at the back. A lineup that lost Bichette in free agency looked to make up for it by bringing in
Kazuma Okamoto and
Jesus Sanchez. Meanwhile, the team’s shaky bullpen upgraded from hard-throwing righty
Seranthony Dominguez by bringing in ever-reliable soft-tosser
Tyler Rogers. Missing out on both Bichette and Tucker takes some of the punch out of Toronto’s offseason, but adding Cease to a rotation that already includes
Kevin Gausman,
Shane Bieber, and
Trey Yesavage should make the Jays significantly more threatening than they already were last year.
Other Options
Plenty of teams had offseasons worthy of praise aside from the five listed above. The Tigers managed to snag arguably the top pitcher available in lefty
Framber Valdez on a short-term deal while also reuniting with future Hall of Famer and Detroit legend
Justin Verlander, though failing to upgrade the lineup is surely disappointing for fans hoping to see the team make the most of
Tarik Skubal’s likely last year in town.
The Red Sox were very busy this winter as they brought in
Sonny Gray,
Johan Oviedo,
Willson Contreras, and
Caleb Durbin via the trade market while signing
Ranger Suarez and
Isiah Kiner-Falefa in free agency, but the team’s failure to reunite with Bregman casts a shadow over their busy winter.
The Astros got the rotation depth they coveted, signing NPB star
Tatsuya Imai to a three-year deal with multiple opt-outs and acquiring righty
Mike Burrows in a three-team trade that sent outfielder
Jacob Melton to the Rays. They’re still too right-handed and have a glut of infielders that could still lead to one more big spring trade.
The Pirates were very active by their usual standards, overhauling the lineup to bring in
Ryan O’Hearn,
Marcell Ozuna, and
Brandon Lowe among others. The Rangers came into the winter without much room to add but managed to come away with a solid bat (Nimmo) for the lineup and a big arm (
MacKenzie Gore) for the rotation nonetheless. The Mariners kept
Josh Naylor and added
Brendan Donovan to the infield. The A’s added only complementary pieces (McNeil,
Aaron Civale) in terms of external additions but deserve praise for their franchise-altering extensions of
Tyler Soderstrom and
Jacob Wilson.
On the flipside, the rebuilding Cardinals managed to shed significant portions of the Contreras, Gray and
Nolan Arenado contracts and pulled in a nice return from the Mariners (and Rays) in the three-team Donovan trade.
What team do MLBTR’s readers think had the best offseason this winter? Have your say in the poll below:
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