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With the signings of infielder Alex Bregman by the Boston Red Sox and starting pitcher Nick Pivetta by the San Diego Padres, a reasonably fair evaluation of winners and losers this offseason can be made.
The top 31 free agents as listed by The Times all have found new homes. So have numerous other players through the free-agent and trade markets. It’s time to identify trends, recognize teams that greatly improved and chide those who stood pat or took a step backward.
City slickers
It’d be too easy to begin with Los Angeles and check off the numerous ways the Dodgers bolstered their roster ahead of their quest to become the first team to win consecutive World Series championships since the New York Yankees’ three-peat from 1998-2000.
So let’s circle back to N.Y.C. The Yankees lost the offseason-opening mega-sweepstakes for slugging outfielder Juan Soto to their Queens counterpart, the Mets, with Soto signing for a record $765 million over 15 years. Soto had spent the 2024 season with the Yankees, posting the highest bWAR of his illustrious seven-year career at 7.9, hitting 41 home runs, driving in 109 and scoring a league-high 128.
The offseason becomes an unabashed success for the Dodgers after Japenese phenom Roki Sasaki and top relievers Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates join an already impressive haul.
But the Bronx Bombers longtime general manager, Brian Cashman, didn’t mope, instead improving the American League champion roster with several adroit moves, starting with pitchers. Staff ace Gerrit Cole declined to opt out after some initial waffling, then free agent left-handed starter Max Fried was signed for eight years at $218 million.
Adding Fried emboldened Cashman to deal left-handed starter Nestor Cortes to the Milwaukee Brewers for elite closer Devin Williams. After adding a few more bullpen pieces, Cashman traded former UCLA pitcher and fringe major leaguer Cody Poteet to the Chicago Cubs for Cody Bellinger.
Bellinger, the former Dodger and 2019 National League Most Valuable Player, could be an ideal fit in pinstripes. He’s penciled in to play center field, which would allow Aaron Judge to move to his more natural right field spot. Bellinger can also play first base, but the Yankees signed veteran slugger Paul Goldschmidt as well.
The Mets, meanwhile, followed the splashy Soto signing by reeling in several pitchers. Sean Manaea, whose new sweeper turned him into one of the NL’s top starters, re-signed, standout Yankees reliever Clay Holmes is now in Queens and converting to the starting rotation and veteran Frankie Montas will attempt to regain the pre-injury form he displayed with the Oakland Athletics.
The last offseason move was to re-sign fan favorite and reliable slugger Pete Alonso to a team-friendly two-year, $54-million deal.
Another big city — the one with broad shoulders — enjoyed a solid offseason, mostly through trades. The Chicago Cubs acquired supremely talented five-tool outfielder Kyle Tucker and experienced closer Ryan Pressly from the Houston Astros, reliable reliever Eli Morgan from the Cleveland Guardians and similarly effective Ryan Brasier from the Dodgers.
Closer Devin Williams, owner of the ‘Airbender’ changeup, wasn’t blowing smoke when he said he’d been told he’d be traded to the Dodgers. Instead, he went to the Yankees.
The Cubs also signed two intriguing free-agent arms, late-blooming starter Colin Rea and longtime Minnesota Twins left-handed reliever Caleb Thielbar.
The other team in Chicago, the one that posted one of the worst records in baseball history last season, hasn’t spent much money this offseason, but it did acquire several highly touted prospects by trading staff ace Garrett Crochet.
Crochet, a left-hander under team control through 2026, moves from the White Sox to the Red Sox, while top catching prospect Kyle Teel and budding slugger Braden Montgomery are among the four players shipped from Boston to Chicago.
Then, of course, in sprawling Los Angeles, the Dodgers added two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell and 23-year-old Japanese sensation Roki Sasaki to their rotation, left-handed Tanner Scott and right-hander Kirby Yates to the back of their bullpen, Michael Conforto to their outfield and Korean import Hyeseong Kim to their infield.
They also re-signed outfielder Teoscar Hernández and super utility man Kiké Hernández, picked up the $5-million option on backup infielder and clubhouse leader Miguel Rojas, and gave versatile Tommy Edman a five-year, $74-million extension. Whew!
The Dodgers have amassed so much talent at every position and are so focused on fine details, they are poised to set a new MLB record with 120 wins.
The Angels did a lot less, but they aren’t really located in Los Angeles anyway. They signed free-agent starters Yusei Kikuchi and Kyle Hendricks, and stocked up on potential replacements for Anthony Rendon, the vastly overpaid and under-motivated third baseman who will again miss a large portion of a season to injury.
Spinning wheels
The Padres were atop this dubious basket until — surprise! — they reached agreement with free agent starter Pivetta on a four-year, $55-million deal as spring training got underway. Otherwise, the franchise that seemed to be hot on the heels of the Dodgers apparently has been distracted by ownership squabbles and belt-tightening.
In the American League, the Seattle Mariners and Baltimore Orioles stumbled through curiously inactive offseasons. Both teams are strong playoff contenders that seemingly could ascend to the level of the Yankees, Astros and Guardians with a few offseason upgrades.
Seattle has an excellent starting rotation but one of the most feeble lineups in baseball. Yet all they did was re-sign middle infielder Jorge Polanco and add utility infielder Donovan Solano.
With the Padres embroiled in an ownership dispute and the Dodgers making high-level offseason moves, will the Padres’ faithful have anything to cheer for in 2025?
Baltimore merely replaced departing players with equal or lesser pieces. Staff ace Corbin Burnes left to sign with the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Orioles countered by signing 17-year veteran Charlie Morton, 41, and Japanese import Tomoyuki Sugano, 35. They also likely overpaid for the oft-injured outfielder Tyler O’Neill by signing him to a three-year, $49.5-million deal during the winter meetings to replace Anthony Santander and his 44 home runs and 102 runs batted in.
Best extension candidates
Giving contract extensions to players still under team control can be appealing to teams and players. The team locks up a young player projected as being a key contributor, avoiding arbitration and delaying free agency. The player gains lifelong financial security with a contract that also serves as a hedge against catastrophic injury.
The potential downside for the team is miscalculating how good a player will become and overpaying. The potential downside for the player is underestimating their future value and finding themselves underpaid during their most productive years.
With that in mind, here are slam dunk candidates for extensions to be negotiating during spring training.
Tarik Skubal, Tigers: The AL Cy Young Award winner agreed to a $10.15-million salary for 2025, a richly deserved raise of nearly 400% for his second of three arbitration seasons before he becomes a free agent in 2027. Why not try to secure the homegrown left-hander through 2030 when he’ll be 33 years old? Including this season, that could be a five-year deal for something in the range of $130 million.
Garrett Crochet, Red Sox: Like Skubal, Crochet is a dominant left-handed starter scheduled to become a free agent in 2027. He is an absolute bargain this season after accepting a $3.8-million offer to avoid arbitration. He also is open to an extension, telling reporters in January: “Staying in Boston long-term is something that has a lot of merit in my mind and something I think would be awesome.”
As the Dodgers officially opened spring training at Camelback Ranch on Tuesday, returning players were firmly looking forward as they embarked on a title defense.
Junior Caminero, Tampa Bay Rays: A 21-year-old infielder whose potent bat tore up triple-A last season and double-A in 2023 while he was still too young to drink, Caminero plays for an organization that has aggressively inked players to extensions. It’s worked out for the team (see Evan Longoria) and it’s backfired spectacularly (see Wander Franco).
Francisco Alvarez, Mets: Not eligible for free agency until 2029, Alvarez is a catcher who hits with power and is mature beyond his years. There was talk of an extension after he hit 25 home runs in 382 at-bats as a rookie in 2023, but the Mets held off, perhaps wisely. Alvarez hit only 11 homers in 308 at-bats in 2024 and the wait-and-see approach might again hold.
Other candidates include starting pitchers Michael King of the Padres and Logan Gilbert of the Mariners. Then there are teams that might need to choose between two stars approaching free agency (e.g.: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or Bo Bichette of the Blue Jays) or two youngsters with great potential.
The Colorado Rockies negotiated a seven-year, $63.5-million extension a year ago with shortstop Ezequiel Tovar that also adds a $23-million team option for 2031. They refrained from extending outfielder Nolan Jones, even though in 2023, he posted an exceptional slash line of .297/.389/.542 and became the first MLB rookie to hit 20 home runs, steal 20 bases and record 19 outfield assists.
Smart moves in hindsight. Tovar led the league in 2024 with 45 doubles, added 26 home runs and batted .269 despite striking out 200 times while playing exceptional defense. Jones was sidelined with back and knee injuries and batted only .227 with three homers.
Amid the euphoria of winning the 2023 World Series, the Texas Rangers considered offering extensions to young key contributors Evan Carter and Josh Jung. They didn’t do so, and are content with the decision. Carter, an outfielder, missed most of the 2024 season with back issues, batting .188 in 45 games. Jung, a third baseman, missed the first four months of the 2024 season with a fractured right wrist, batting .264 in 46 games.
Go beyond the scoreboard
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