Brandon Lowe, 2B; Ryan O\u2019Hearn, 1B\/DH, Pirates\u00a0<\/p>\n
If there was one thing the Pirates needed this winter, it was more bats. Pittsburgh\u2019s lineup ranked dead last in runs scored and OPS, effectively masking what was quietly one of the better pitching staffs in the big leagues.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Pirates aggressively sought upgrades, pursuing NL home run king Kyle Schwarber before he returned to the Phillies, then 10 days later acquiring two-time All-Star Brandon Lowe in a three-team deal<\/a>. But Pittsburgh wasn\u2019t done, as they signed 2025 All-Star slugger Ryan O\u2019Hearn to a two-year, $29 million deal just days later.\u00a0<\/p>\n O\u2019Hearn\u2019s 10.7% walk rate fits right in with the Pittsburgh lineup\u2019s approach, while Lowe, who has twice belted 30-plus home runs in his career, does something Pirates hitters have struggled to do the last three seasons: leave the yard.\u00a0<\/p>\n Dylan Cease, SP, Blue Jays\u00a0 Dylan Cease\u2019s seven-year, $210 million contract is the richest signed by a pitcher this offseason so far. | David Frerker-Imagn Images<\/p>\n Watching rookie Trey Yesavage and veteran starter Kevin Gausman pitch in the postseason, one would think that the last thing the Blue Jays needed was a frontline starter. But with rotation question marks in terms of the health of former American League Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber and two-time All-Star Jose Berr\u00edos, it made sense for Toronto to bring in a durable hurler.\u00a0<\/p>\n Inconsistencies aside, that\u2019s what Cease is. He ranks first in games started and seventh in innings pitched since 2021. And while he also sometimes struggles to harness his electric stuff\u2014a 10.0% career walk rate\u2014he also possesses a deadly fastball-slider combo that has helped him miss bats at an elite rate.\u00a0<\/p>\n Should Cease pitch to his full potential, he\u2019ll elevate the Blue Jays\u2019 rotation from good to great.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sonny Gray, SP; Ranger Su\u00e1rez, SP, Red Sox\u00a0<\/p>\n Boston\u2019s 2025 rotation boasted one of the best pitchers in baseball in Garrett Crochet\u2014and not enough behind the lefty ace. Brayan Bello is the only returning starter besides Crochet who posted a sub-3.50 ERA.\u00a0<\/p>\n But all that changed with the acquisitions of Gray and Su\u00e1rez. Since 2022, Gray is tied for ninth among all starters in wins (43), ranks 17th in innings pitched (650 \u2154) and 36th in ERA (3.53). Even at age 36, the three-time All-Star remains one of the most reliable No. 2 or No. 3 starters in the game.\u00a0<\/p>\n Then, there\u2019s Su\u00e1rez. Nearly as successful as Gray the last several years, Su\u00e1rez checks one very important box for the World Series-hopeful Red Sox. He\u2019s made as many career postseason starts\u2014eight\u2014as all four other projected Boston starters have in their careers combined. And the ex-Phillies southpaw owns the sixth-best ERA among pitchers<\/a> with at least 42 postseason innings pitched, according to Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated.\u00a0<\/p>\n Freddy Peralta, SP, Mets<\/p>\n The Mets\u2019 2025 season was a series of unfortunate events, and in many ways, the chain reaction was kickstarted by the club\u2019s underachieving rotation. Injuries cut short the seasons of Kodai Senga, Sean Manaea and Griffin Canning, and when healthy, the Mets\u2019 rotation was unable to pitch deep into games, leading to a bullpen running on fumes.\u00a0<\/p>\n New York then had to rely on unproven-but-promising youngsters like Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat to pick up the slack in the middle of a run at the postseason. To make matters worse, the Mets lacked a true ace.\u00a0<\/p>\n That\u2019s no longer the case with Peralta in town. The former Brewers righthander ranked third in wins, seventh in ERA and ninth in strikeout rate in a career-best 33 starts in 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n Edwin Diaz, RP, Dodgers\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"San](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/01kfwdb2x9gb1wg3cfsg.jpg\" "\\"San")
<\/p>\n