As perhaps the best-run organization in all of professional sports, the Los Angeles Dodgers could have taken a three-month vacation and frozen their major-league roster and still reported to spring training as the favorites to win the 2026 World Series.
Dodger Stadium is so embedded with Hall of Fame-caliber players, international stars and emerging talent from a top-rated farm system that Andrew Friedman’s front office and Mark Walter’s ownership group could have stuck with the status quo and tried for a three-peat.
In fact, Friedman and general manager Brandon Gomes reiterated through November that they liked their championship core, and though they’d look to add to their bullpen and outfield, they didn’t see either area as a dire need.
The Dodgers went out and signed All-Star closer Edwin Díaz away from the New York Mets on a three-year, $69 million contract and landed All-Star outfielder Kyle Tucker on a four-year, $240 million deal.
In the final year of the sport’s collective bargaining agreement, the Dodgers continued to press their advantages. They not only upgraded each desired area of their roster, but they also did so by signing the best available player at each position.
Los Angeles is not an offseason winner as much as a category unto itself. The defending World Series champs are the team of Japan, the outlier that will be cited by both sides in the upcoming rounds of labor negotiations, and an entertainment company that enjoys a sweetheart TV deal at a time when the rest of that business is crumbling.
To varying degrees, everyone else is playing catch-up.
Winners
Dylan Cease and the Toronto Blue Jays as a destination team
After pushing the Dodgers to the 11th inning of a World Series Game 7, the Blue Jays capitalized on all that postseason revenue and this newfound momentum. Following years of being used by free agents for leverage and failing to close deals for top players, the Blue Jays were able to showcase Toronto’s electric environment throughout the playoffs and lure in elite talent.
Dylan Cease’s signing with the Toronto Blue Jays was one of the first dominoes to fall this offseason. (John Raoux / Associated Press)
The biggest deal went to Cease, a tantalizing pitcher who scored a seven-year, $210 million contract because of his durability and swing-and-miss stuff, which overrode his uneven performance last season (8-12, 4.55 ERA) and questions about why he hasn’t quite put it all together yet.
Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez
After beating the Detroit Tigers and MLB’s Labor Relations Department in a landmark arbitration hearing, Skubal will get a record $32 million salary in his final season before becoming a free agent.
In looking out for his long-term interests, Skubal, the two-time Cy Young Award winner, should benefit from the durable presence of Valdez, a World Series champion who can help lighten the workload at the top of Detroit’s rotation and carry a team in October.
Valdez, who’s represented by Octagon agent Ulises Cabrera, did rather well considering his age (32), average velocity and that cross-up incident with his catcher, a combination of factors that dragged his negotiations into February.
Although Valdez did not get the high end of his contract projections, the average annual value of his three-year, $115 million contract is extremely high. The baseball fit in Detroit is also strong, given his relationship with Tigers manager A.J. Hinch and the chance to make history with Skubal.
Pete Alonso
It only takes one team, right? And so what if it does? Alonso got paid.
Last year, Alonso waited around until just before the start of spring training to re-sign with the Mets on a deal designed for him to try again. Heading into last season, Alonso devoted more time than ever to his prep work and biomechanics, resulting in better mechanics and terrific production. His .871 OPS was his best mark since 2019, his rookie season.
Needing to add a premium bat after missing out on Kyle Schwarber, the Baltimore Orioles pivoted to Alonso, signing the slugger to a five-year, $155 million deal (narrowly beating Schwarber’s $150 million). Was there another team willing to pay as much? Executives have their doubts. Also, it doesn’t matter.
In June 2023, Alonso turned down a seven-year, $158 million extension from the Mets that would have covered his final year of arbitration and six free-agent years. Then, after protracted free-agent negotiations, he re-signed with the Mets in February for a two-year, $54 million guarantee. The deal included a $30 million salary for 2025 and a one-year opt-out.
Alonso’s two free-agent contracts add up to six years, $185 million. Add the $20.5 million he earned in his final year of arbitration, and it’s seven years, $205.5 million.
He is one of the biggest winners by a long shot.
Scott Boras
This winter turned out to be another bonanza for Boras, the high-profile agent who represents Alonso, Skubal and Cease, among others. Boras also negotiated Cody Bellinger’s return to the New York Yankees on a five-year, $162.5 million deal and helped Ranger Suárez land a five-year, $130 million contract with the Boston Red Sox, once again proving that teams that want access to the top of the free-agent market often have to go through his company.
Wrigleyville bar owners
The Chicago Cubs should be a hot ticket all summer, crowding the neighborhood with locals, tourists and generations of die-hard fans who want to see what Pete Crow-Armstrong will do next.
The Cubs added Alex Bregman, a two-time World Series champion, to a club that made it to the postseason last year. (Alex Slitz / Getty Images)
Armed with a new contract extension and a bigger budget for baseball operations, team president Jed Hoyer finally landed All-Star third baseman Alex Bregman (yet another Boras client) on a five-year, $175 million deal and traded for Edward Cabrera, the potential Game 1 playoff starter the Cubs missed out on at last year’s trade deadline.
Craig Counsell has an experienced group of players, a deep pitching staff and an almost entirely new bullpen to manage. After winning 92 games and a playoff round last year, the Cubs expect to keep the lights on at the Friendly Confines for most of October.
Closers
Often overlooked, relievers are usually among the last to sign in the offseason, with most teams preferring to first focus on premium positions. But this year’s class of relievers was particularly robust, with many of the league’s top closers available.
As a result, several teams with playoff aspirations jumped the market early. A slew of one- and two-year deals helped set the tone, starting with the Atlanta Braves’ bringing back Raisel Iglesias on a $16 million contract in mid-November. Though he’s not a closer, Phil Maton’s two-year, $14.5 million deal with the Cubs (plus a club option for 2028) also helped set the market price.
Ryan Helsley signed a two-year, $28 million deal with the Baltimore Orioles shortly after Thanksgiving, and Emilio Pagán returned to the Cincinnati Reds on a two-year deal worth $20 million the next week. These contracts helped establish the markets for Devin Williams ($51 million from the Mets), Díaz and Robert Suarez ($45 million with Atlanta). All signed three-year contracts before the conclusion of the Winter Meetings.
A rush of signings took place over the next week. Tyler Rogers went to the Blue Jays (three years, $37 million), Kyle Finnegan re-signed with the Tigers (two years, $19 million), and Kenley Jansen will join him in Detroit (one year, $9 million with a club option in 2027). Pete Fairbanks finalized a $13 million contract with the Miami Marlins just before Christmas, ensuring all of baseball’s top free-agent relievers were signed by the new year.
Losers
St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals traded one All-Star from the roster each month of the offseason: Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras, Nolan Arenado and Brendan Donovan will play for different teams this year. Team payroll is projected to be its lowest in 15 years and will likely fall below $100 million for the first time since 2010.
More financial woes are expected. The Cardinals were one of several teams to cut ties with their regional sports network, FanDuel Sports Network, and their new television deal under the MLB system slashed their anticipated TV revenue. Another significant hit to gate revenue is expected after the team posted historically low attendance figures in 2025. St. Louis also qualifies to be a revenue-sharing recipient for the first time under Bill DeWitt Jr.’s ownership tenure.
Brendan Donovan was dealt to the Seattle Mariners as part of a three-team deal with the Tampa Bay Rays. (John Fisher / Getty Images)
It’s a grim time to be a Cardinals fan. Ownership’s refusal to acknowledge this era as a rebuild (despite the obvious operations as such) doesn’t help, and it comes across as insensitive.
FanGraphs projects the Cardinals to finish last in the NL Central, something they have done just once since 2013. It’s a far cry from the standard of baseball dedicated fans have come to expect.
Chaim Bloom deserves credit for accomplishing what he sought to do in his first season as president of baseball operations. He offloaded veteran talent (and maneuvered through three separate no-trade clauses to do so) and stockpiled the Cardinals’ minor-league pipeline with much-needed pitching depth. St. Louis’ farm system is on the rise, and several people within the organization believe the right plan is in place, even if it won’t immediately lead to on-field success.
But that won’t make this season any easier to watch. The Cardinals have made it clear their focus is on the future. We’ll check back in on Baseball Heaven come 2028.
FanDuel Sports Network
The flailing regional sports network could see a full break from MLB, leaving roughly one-third of the league facing serious cuts to expected television revenue just weeks before the season. With the first spring training games less than two weeks away, multiple teams are still configuring how fans will watch games in 2026.
Main Street Sports group, the parent company of FanDuel Sports Network, had the rights to broadcast the games of nine MLB teams this season. Six teams — the Cardinals, Reds, Marlins, Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays — announced their departures from FanDuel Sports Network earlier this month. The Tigers announced the end of their partnership Monday. All will permit MLB to oversee and distribute their broadcasts in 2026. The two other teams — the Braves and Los Angeles Angels — have yet to announce a decision.
For teams newly under MLB’s umbrella, a mad dash to secure ads and promote subscriptions has begun. Unlike under FanDuel, which paid a set fee for the rights to broadcast, revenue under MLB is set by generating ads and streaming subscriptions.
That means revenue is not guaranteed, at least certainly not to the degree that it was under a regional sports network. The amount of diminished television revenue varies by team and does not take into consideration the production costs that now fall as the team’s responsibility.
As baseball prepares for a potential work stoppage, the shape of its local broadcasts will be one of several pressing topics to address.
Milwaukee Brewers
It’s tough to question the Brewers because they are one of the game’s most consistent winners. Based on their track record, their offseason moves might work out great. It’s just hard to justify trading a staff ace after achieving the highest regular-season wins total in franchise history. Perhaps that’s what the Brewers care about. The regular season. Not the playoffs, where they face off against better competition and routinely get dismissed.
Freddy Peralta, 29, pitched to a 2.70 ERA across 33 games (176 2/3 innings) last year, his highest output in a season. (John Fisher / Getty Images)
Last season went somewhat differently for the Brewers; they reached the NLCS. Despite that, their lone notable free-agent signing is Akil Baddoo on a split deal. Instead of building or mostly retaining, they traded away starter Freddy Peralta (and Tobias Myers) to the Mets for two top-100 prospects.
Minnesota Twins
Most organizations are finalizing last-minute details and preparing to open camp during the final two weeks of the offseason. The Twins had a different strategy in mind.
Former team president Derek Falvey and the Twins mutually agreed to part ways just 13 days before pitchers and catchers were scheduled to report, a decision that surprised several people within the organization. General manager Jeremy Zoll has taken over as head of baseball operations, a lofty task given how little runway he has before the season starts.
The leadership change comes less than two months after the Pohlad family completed a partial sale of the team. Tom Pohlad, who took over for his brother Joe Pohlad as executive chair and controlling owner, expects the team to be competitive. He holds those expectations despite a significant teardown at last year’s trade deadline and minimal offseason additions to a team coming off a 92-loss season.
Outside of a two-year, $14 million deal with catcher Victor Caratini and a one-year, $7 million signing of first baseman Josh Bell, the Twins’ hot stove has been about as cold as the winter itself. In fact, you can make an argument that their biggest offseason acquisition was hiring Derek Shelton as manager.
The Twins did keep what was left of their core, something that was no guarantee at the beginning of the offseason. Starters Pablo López and Joe Ryan, along with outfielder Bryan Buxton, will return to the team.
The Twins are aided by playing in a meek AL Central, but the Tigers’ pitching staff solidifies them as division favorites. Even the Chicago White Sox have outspent the Twins in free agency. Though the owner has pledged to field a competitive team, the team is plagued by continued disarray.
The undecideds
Zac Gallen
At this point, Gallen is the best remaining free agent on The Athletic’s Free Agent Big Board. Perhaps an injury in camp will force a pitching-needy team to step up for Gallen, another Boras client and a one-time All-Star who turned down a one-year, $22.025 million qualifying offer after an inconsistent season with the Arizona Diamondbacks (13-15, 4.83 ERA across 192 innings). But signing after the Super Bowl isn’t ideal for a starting pitcher trying to get ready for Opening Day.
David Stearns and Steve Cohen
In Flushing, N.Y., the team president and the owner recognized that change was needed.
The Mets waved goodbye to franchise stalwarts Alonso, Edwin Díaz, Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil. They added Williams, Bo Bichette, Luis Robert Jr., Jorge Polanco, Luke Weaver and Peralta. They ended up changing one-third of their roster. That’s a lot of newness. To boot, their offseason started with a complete overhaul of their coaching staff under manager Carlos Mendoza.
The Mets missed out on the playoffs last season, and their core grew stale. It made sense to make changes. It remains to be seen how the new pieces — including a couple playing new positions such as Bichette (third base) and Polanco (first base) — all jell.
Tatsuya Imai and Munetaka Murakami
Compared with expectations, both Japanese players received relatively light contracts that still represented enormous raises from what they would have earned in Nippon Professional Baseball. They also went outside the small group of established teams with deep connections to Japan, which could offer new opportunities or lengthen their adjustment periods.
Imai’s three-year, $54 million contract with the Houston Astros gives the right-handed pitcher the ability to opt out after the first season.
If Imai flourishes with the Astros — the way one of his mentors, Yusei Kikuchi, excelled after a midseason trade to Houston in 2024 — then he will cash in as a free agent big-time. If some of the questions about Imai’s upside are realized, then he still has a lot of security.
Murakami, the left-handed slugger who just turned 26, did not get a megadeal from one of the New York teams that had scouted him heavily. But his two-year, $34 million deal with the White Sox gives him the chance to acclimate to major-league pitching, put up power numbers for a rebuilding team and still become a free agent at a prime age.
New York Yankees
After mostly running it back with the same group that won 94 games last year and got bounced by Toronto in the Division Series, the only way this season will be judged as a complete success is if the Yankees win their 28th World Series title and first since 2009, an epic drought by the franchise’s exacting standards.
