As 2025 draws to a close, MLB teams have less than two months before they begin reconvening in warmer climates for spring training. Many teams still have yet to accomplish their offseason goals, and several big free agents remain unsigned. The Royals have been active in upgrading their roster, but still have yet to acquire the big bat their lineup needs.
With the Royals hoping to be American League contenders this year, let’s take a look around the league and see which teams have improved, and which still have a lot more work to do:
Added: Mark Leiter Jr., Jeff McNeil
Departed: JJ Bleday, José Leclerc, Sean Newcomb
Not surprising the penny-pinching Athletics have had a quiet offseason. They did acquire former All-Star second baseman Jeff McNeil, but the Mets are playing down almost half the money owed him. The Athletics have a stable full of good young hitters, but could use a lot more pitching. They may be looking to move pitcher Luis Severino, who is reportedly not enamored with playing in Sacramento.
Added: Peter Alonso, Shane Baz, Ryan Helsley, Andrew Kittredge, Leody Taveras, Taylor Ward
Departed: Dylan Carlson, Zach Eflin, Jorge Mateo, Grayson Rodriguez, Gary Sanchez, Tomoyuki Sugano
The Orioles took a huge step backward last season, and have been one of the most aggressive teams this offseason to get back on track. They made a big splash in free agency to land Alonso, the second-biggest contract in club history. The trades for Shane Baz and Taylor Ward were each a bit head-scratching for how much the Orioles gave up for a player with major injury concerns (Baz) or only one year left before free agency (Ward). But it also demonstrates how aggressive the Orioles have been in improving a team that lost 86 games last year.
Added: Sonny Gray, Johan Oviedo, Willson Contreras
Departed: Alex Bregman, Hunter Dobbins, Richard Fitts, Vaughn Grissom, Liam Hendriks, Nathan Lowe, Steven Matz, Dustin May, Rob Refsnyder, Justin Wilson
The Red Sox have pulled off two trades with the Cardinals, who are run by former Red Sox GM Chaim Bloom. Boston was able to add two solid players in Gray and Contreras without having to give up much minor league depth. More head-scratching was the trade of top outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia to Pittsburgh in a five-player trade for injured pitcher Johan Oviedo. Boston continues to seek a high-upside arm like Kansas City’s Cole Ragans, and has a glut of outfielders they can deal from.
Added: Anthony Kay, Munetaka Murakami, Sean Newcomb
Departed: Tyler Alexander, Martin Perez, Mike Tauchman, Michael A. Taylor
The White Sox did make a big splash, landing Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami to a two-year, $34 million deal. But most of their moves continue to be pretty small-bore as they continue their rebuild. They are looking to move outfielder Luis Robert Jr., which would shave another $20 million off a payroll that is currently projected to be less than $90 million.
Added: Shawn Armstrong, Stuart Fairchild
Departed: Will Brennan, Nic Enright, Sam Hentges, Jakob Junis, Jhonkensy Noel
The Guardians’ playbook each year is to let useful talent depart, then find guys off the street to plug in to the roster, and watch those guys excel. It is another quiet offseason in Cleveland, and no one expects the team to be very active despite suffering a heartbreaking postseason loss for the second year in a row. They’ll do nothing all winter and somehow find a way to win 90 games.
Departed: Alex Cobb, Andy Ibáñez, Tommy Kahnle, Alex Lange
It has been a surprisingly quiet offseason in Detroit. The team has lost in the ALDS in each of the last two postseasons and has a solid core of players, but so far this winter they have only focused on the bullpen, bringing back Kyle Finnegan, and adding All-Star closer Kenley Jansen. Rumors continue to swirl around ace pitcher Tarik Skubal, and there have been some reports they could be interested in free agent Alex Bregman.
Added: Nick Allen, Mike Burrows
Departed: Victor Caratini, Mauricio Dubón, Jacob Melton, Brendan Rodgers, Framber Valdez
The Astros are seeking starting pitching and have interest in reuniting with free agent Framber Valdez. They added some cost-controlled pitching in Mike Burrows in a three-team trade with the Pirates that cost them prospect Anderson Brito and Jacob Melton. Outfielder Jake Meyers could be offered to teams in exchange for more pitching depth.
Added: Mason Black, Isaac Collins, Alex Lange, Nick Mears, Kameron Misner, Matt Strahm, Lane Thomas
Departed: Jonathan Bowlan, Taylor Clarke, Adam Frazier, Randall Grichuk, Hunter Harvey, Michael Lorenzen, MJ Melendez, Angel Zerpa, Mike Yastrzemski
It wouldn’t have taken much to upgrade the Royals’ outfield, but they’ve done an effective job of it by adding Lane Thomas and Isaac Collins without having to give up much. The bullpen was also upgraded with Matt Strahm and Nick Mears replacing Angel Zerpa and Jonathan Bowlan. And the biggest move this winter may have been signing All-Star infielder Maikel Garcia to a five-year, $57.5 million contract. The team may still be looking to make a big addition to the lineup and have been linked to Boston’s Jarren Duran and St. Louis’ Brendan Donovan.
Added: Vaughn Grissom, Alek Manoah, Drew Pomeranz, Grayson Rodriguez, Jordan Romano
Departed: Tyler Anderson, Andrew Chafin, Luis Garcia, Kyle Hendricks, Kenley Jansen, Yoán Mocnada, Luis Rengifo, Hunter Strickland, Taylor Ward
It has been a decade since the Angels had a winning season, and yet they are operating like a small-market club this offseason. They are taking chances on young players who were good once upon a time like Vaughn Grissom and Alek Manoah, and tinkering around the edges. They did do a good job getting value for Taylor Ward by getting promising young pitcher Grayson Rodriguez, but the Angels still seem a long way from being relevant.
Added: Josh Bell, Eric Orze
Departed: Christian Vázquez
The Twins had a fire sale this summer and have been very quiet since then. They brought in some minority owners to infuse the club with cash to help address a $500 million debt carried by the club. So expect the team to be in austerity mode for a while. Pitcher Joe Ryan is generating a lot of trade interest and could be the next player sent out the door.
Departed: Cody Bellinger, Paul Goldschmidt, Ian Hamilton, Mark Leiter Jr., Austin Slater, Luke Weaver, Devin Williams
George Steinbrenner would be rolling over in his grave to see the Yankees having done nothing to improve a team that was bounced in the ALDS! The Yankees did bring back Ryan Yarbrough, and were perhaps surprised when outfielder Trent Grisham accepted his Qualifying Offer to stay. They are interested in bringing back free agent Cody Bellinger, and could make a move for Kyle Tucker, but it has been a surprisingly quiet offseason in the Bronx so far.
Added: Jose A. Ferrer, Rob Refsnyder
Departed: Caleb Ferguson, Mitch Garver, Jorge Polanco, Taylor Saucedo, Eugenio Suárez, Trent Thornton
Someone check to see if Jerry Dipoto still has a pulse – it’s unlike him to be this passive in an offseason. The Mariners have made some moves, notably bringing back first baseman Josh Naylor to a five-year, $92.5 million contract. They also made an aggressive trade, dealing top catching prospect Harry Ford to the Nationals for reliever Jose A. Ferrer. They have some interest in bringing back slugger Eugenio Suárez. The Mariners may still have a few tricks up their sleeves this winter after getting so close to winning the first pennant in club history.
Added: Jake Fraley, Steven Matz, Jacob Melton, Cedric Mullins, Steven Wilson
Departed: Shane Baz, Peter Fairbanks, Stuart Fairchild, Brandon Lowe, Jake Mangum, Kameron Misner, Mason Montgomery, Eric Orze
This looks like a typical Rays offseason – trade high on players, sign some low-cost value free agents, and cut players not worth their salary. They got tremendous value for Baz, adding four prospects and a draft pick. They moved Brandon Lowe’s $11.5 million salary, as well as Mason Montgomery and Jake Mangum in order to land a MLB-ready outfield prospect in Jacob Melton and a high-upside arm in Anderson Brito. The non-tender of closer Peter Fairbanks was surprising, but no team has signed him yet, suggesting maybe the Rays know something. These aren’t moves that will make the Rays better next year, but it will make them better in the long-term.
Added: Tyler Alexander, Brandon Nimmo
Departed: Shawn Armstrong, Patrick Corbin, Danny Coulombe, Adolis GarcÃa, Jon Gray, Jonah Heim, Merrill Kelly, Phil Maton, Hoby Milner, Marcus Semien, Jacob Webb
The Rangers are looking to cut payroll, which was perhaps behind the surprising non-tenders of former All-Stars Adolis GarcÃa and Jonah Heim. They made a really interesting trade with the Mets to send second baseman Marcus Semien to New York for outfielder Brandon Nimmo in a deal that makes sense for both clubs. The Rangers will have to totally revamp their bullpen, and hope their league-best pitching staff doesn’t regress much despite losing some arms.
Added: Dylan Cease, Tyler Rogers
Departed: Chris Bassitt, Bo Bichette, Seranthony Dominguez, Ty France, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Alek Manoah, Max Scherzer
The Blue Jays came literal inches from winning a title last year, and seem determined to make up the difference this winter. They made a big splash in signing free agent Dylan Cease to a seven-year, $210 million contract, then added reliever Tyler Rogers on a three-year, $37 million contract. They are pursuing top free agent Kyle Tucker, which could take them out of the running to retain star infielder Bo Bichette. After losing out to the Dodgers in the World Series, the Blue Jays seemed to have learned a lesson – spend like the Dodgers.