Spring training is almost upon us as pitchers and catchers have begun to arrive at team complexes. While many teams still have work to do on their rosters, it's getting late in the game for major acquisitions. Several franchises did great work this offseason and have set themselves up for big things in 2025.
Here are the five teams that did the best job this offseason at upgrading their rosters.
5. Arizona Diamondbacks
The Diamondbacks lost a key piece in first baseman Christian Walker, who signed with the Houston Astros, but wound up coming out ahead in the end. They landed Josh Naylor in a trade with the Cleveland Guardians to replace Walker, then attacked their rotation needs aggressively.
Arizona signed Corbin Burnes to a six-year, $210 million contract to join Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly atop the team's rotation. The low-cost addition of Randal Grichuk and a lottery ticket pickup in Trey Mancini were good bets as well.
In a division that features the flashier Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, the Diamondbacks often get lost in the mix. The 2023 National League champions went a long way to making up the ground they lost in 2024 this offseason.
4. New York Yankees
While fans lament the loss of Soto and bemoan the lack of high-level spending, the Yankees have followed up their World Series loss to the Dodgers with a solid offseason.
They signed Max Fried to the biggest contract ever for a left-handed pitcher and should be happy with the results. He's as consistent as any hurler in the game. They traded for Cody Bellinger and signed Paul Goldschmidt, acquiring two bounce-back candidates. Perhaps their most shrewd move was trading for Devin Williams, arguably baseball's best reliever. They also re-signed Tim Hill in an under-the-radar move.
The Yankees got better this offseason despite losing Soto. They still have work to do, but the roster is more well-rounded than it was a few months ago.
3. Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox were primarily focused on adding arms this offseason and started with a big one. Boston landed lefty Garrett Crochet in a trade with the Chicago White Sox. It's a high-upside deal for a guy who had 209 strikeouts in 146 innings in 2024, but Crochet's injury history makes it a big risk.
The Sox also, however, signed Dodgers World Series hero Walker Buehler to a one-year, $21 million deal and added fellow starter Patrick Sandoval for depth. Reliever Aroldis Chapman has been added to the bullpen as well.
Boston also landed star infielder Alex Bregman on a three-year contract worth $120 million on Wednesday night. Bregman, Crochet and Buehler are high-upside signings that could pay huge dividends.
2. New York Mets
The Mets landed the big fish this offseason, inking Juan Soto to a 15-year, $765 million deal. But landing the 26-year-old perennial MVP candidate wasn't the only move the franchise made in an attempt to build on its NLCS appearance from 2024.
Pete Alonso will be back at Citi Field after signing a two-year, $54 million deal. Additionally, the team's rotation got a boost from adding Frankie Montas, Clay Holmes and Griffin Canning, while retaining Sean Manaea coming off an excellent rebound season, to compensate for the losses of Luis Severino and Jose Quintana. The Mets also landed center fielder Jose Siri in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays, signed Nick Madrigal for infield depth and re-signed Ryne Stanek and added A.J. Minter for bullpen reinforcements.
It was a solid offseason that saw one huge bat imported, another retained and a number of solid arms added.
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
For a second offseason in a row, the Dodgers aced the winter. The defending World Series champions loaded up an already loaded roster, adding to their lineup, pitching staff and bullpen. The rich got much richer.
LA added two-time Cy Young award winner Blake Snell, while also landing Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki and bringing back Clayton Kershaw. Buehler is gone, but the Dodgers more than made up for his departure. Los Angeles also brought in outfielder Michael Conforto and South Korean infielder Hyeseong Kim, while re-signing outfielder Teoscar Hernandez.
The Dodgers loaded up in the bullpen as well. A team strength got even better as they signed lefty closer Tanner Scott and veteran righty Kirby Yates. All in all, the franchise spent more than $450 million this offseason.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Ranking the Five MLB Teams With the Best Offseasons Heading into Spring Training.
