Mid-season rankings for every MLB team
There are three main categories into which the MLB offseason can be separated:
1. The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani before trading for Tyler Glasnow and awarding him a large contract extension. Over $1 billion will be spent in the future; 68 miles would be reached if all of the $1 bills were stacked one on top of the other.
2. The New York Yankees traded for Juan Soto — and they’re still looking to do more.
3. And then there’s most other teams, who appear to be looking for reasons not to spend money.
It’s been a slow burn of an offseason, with a lot of moves still on the way. More than half of Kiley McDaniel’s original top 50 free agents remain unsigned, plus we could still have a couple of significant trades. As we wait for all the dominoes to fall, however, let’s do mid-offseason grades for each team — and one thing each still needs to do.
We’re grading on a curve here, basing our scores on expectations heading into the offseason. (We expected the Dodgers to be big spenders; we did not expect the Colorado Rockies to do anything — and they haven’t.)
Amazingly, some people still want the Dodgers to do even more, like trade for Dylan Cease, because why not, even after the team signed the two best free agents and acquired a starter with No. 1 potential in Kyle Glasnow.
One thing to consider: Walker Buehler, Bobby Miller, Yamamoto, Glasnow, and a host of young players should all be fine in the Dodgers’ rotation. In August, they can still get back together with Clayton Kershaw. I was about to recommend the Dodgers add another outfielder, but Sunday night’s signing of Teoscar Hernandez took care of that depth problem. By bringing in a much-needed right-handed bat, he forces Chris Taylor to play more of a utility position. The Dodgers are, I believe, set. Correct?
To cover a void at third base, they acquired Eugenio Suarez through trade, re-signed Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and signed Eduardo Rodriguez to a four-year deal. They’ve made improvements to a team that was still outscored in the regular season despite winning the World Series, so give the front office credit for realizing they needed to improve.
One action to take is that the Diamondbacks have stated they plan to fill the obvious void left by DH. J.D. Martinez, who is right-handed, is a good fit. If you sign him, the offseason will be “A” grade.
GM Alex Anthopoulos gets a definite A+ for originality. By taking on some bad contracts, he was able to acquire hard-throwing lefty reliever Ray Kerr from the San Diego Padres and Jarred Kelenic from the Seattle Mariners. Prior to that, he dealt reliever Aaron Bummer to the Chicago White Sox for five non-tender candidates, dealt Kyle Wright, who was injured, re-signed Joe Jimenez, and signed Reynaldo Lopez.
Subsequently, the momentous trade of Vaughn Grissom for Chris Sale occurred, followed by a contract modification for Sale. All things considered, it’s an unusual strategy that might be very profitable if Kelenic fulfills his potential and Sale is fit by October. I’m not giving this a “A,” though, because Aaron Nola or Sonny Gray was the Braves’ original plan to strengthen the rotation.
Step one would be to bring in a fourth outfielder. That could be a right-handed platoon partner for Kelenic, someone along the lines of Tommy Pham or Adam Duvall, but I would prefer to see Kelenic get daily playing time. Then see if anything needs to be added when you return in July.
The Royals, the ROYALS, have signed a number of free agents, including Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, Hunter Renfroe, Will Smith, Chris Stratton, and Garrett Hampson, while the majority of the league is in abject poverty. Hey, something happened in 2023 that surprised us, and Wacha and Lugo both had respectable combined WAR totals of 4.2. That could be a strong rotation if Brady Singer finds his form in 2022 and Cole Ragans proves to be the real deal. Despite the fact that Smith and Stratton aren’t getting paid very much and the bullpen was terrible, I’m less optimistic about the other three.
One action item: Are you requesting more? There may be room even though the payroll has increased by roughly $20 million thus far because it is still lower than it was in 2016 and 2018.
Another small-market team that has spent some money in free agency, adding Jeimer Candelario, Frankie Montas, Nick Martinez and Emilio Pagan. Montas, coming off shoulder surgery, and Martinez add some much-needed rotation depth, although Montas is certainly more of a wild card. Now, don’t be fooled: The Reds’ payroll is still one of the lowest in the majors and only about $12 million more than it was in 2023 — and about $25 million less than the club record of $126 million in 2019.
One thing to do: At the Montas signing, GM Nick Krall said the Reds were done with “major moves” but could add to the bench or bullpen. Lefty reliever Matt Moore, who has a 2.20 ERA over the past two seasons, would be a nice boost.
They lost manager Craig Counsell to the Chicago Cubs, so perhaps Pat Murphy, Counsell’s bench coach, will take over smoothly. Despite not adding anything to the major league roster, they signed prospect Jackson Chourio to an eight-year, $82 million contract that includes two team options, so even though they haven’t done anything to bolster the roster, I’ll still give this offseason a strong grade. The Brewers will have a star player at a steep discount if Chourio lives up to the hype.
Keeping Corbin Burnes is one thing to do. Keep Burnes and go for it; the Brewers still have the core of a 92-win team returning in the National League Central, where the division is wide open.
They signed relievers Shelby Miller and Andrew Chafin, outfielder Mark Canha, and pitchers Kenta Maeda and Jack Flaherty to add depth to a rotation decimated by injuries over the last two seasons. Flaherty’s dominating run in the second half of 2019 is a long time ago, and his control problems still bother him. Although I’m not holding my breath that he will suddenly become a front-line starter again, he is still worth a look.
One thing to do: they have a huge, gaping hole at DH and they still need offense. That hole would be filled by Jorge Soler or any of the other DHs available, such as Martinez, Justin Turner, Rhys Hoskins, Brandon Belt, and Joc Pederson.
