Bradford DoolittleDec 4, 2025, 07:00 AM ETCloseMLB writer and analyst for ESPN.com Former NBA writer and analyst for ESPN.com Been with ESPN since 2013
Wilbon, Kornheiser: The Tigers have to listen to trade offers for Tarik Skubal (2:36)Wilbon, Kornheiser: The Tigers have to listen to trade offers for Tarik Skubal (2:36)
As the baseball industry prepares to convene in Orlando, Florida, for the winter meetings, we note that is seems like yesterday that the focus was much farther north, in Toronto. That was where, just over a month ago, the 2025 season reached its crescendo and conclusion with the Los Angeles Dodgers’ thrilling Game 7 win over the Toronto Blue Jays to clinch their second straight World Series crown.
The early steps toward accomplishing that have already taken place in the form of a handful of trades and free agent signings. While the heavy lifting of this hot stove season still lies ahead, things could really get percolating next week with every team’s chief decision-makers in the same place, at the same time.
For now, we’ll check in with our first offseason Stock Watch, which looks at how the landscape has shifted since the World Series ended and glimpses at how things might unfold from here. The numbers set a baseline for the rest of the winter and give us some markers from which to compare everyone’s progress when we check in again after the new year.
So far: The Dodgers have done a little roster pruning and a lot of waiting for the market to take shape.
So far: The Braves have been active on the margins with low-level trades and waiver claims. They will have a hectic spring training when it comes to sorting out all of their depth options. The trade of glove-first Nick Allen for utility player Mauricio Dubon, in conjunction with Ha-Seong Kim’s decision to opt out, threw the shortstop position into even more flux than it already was.
To do: The Braves are poised for a big-time bounce-back season on paper, thanks to a healthy dose of positive regression in both the performance and health departments. They probably want to add at least a midrotation veteran starter. But the top priority is shortstop, and it’s not clear how many good options there are. Bo Bichette’s bat would be a great fit, but his defense wouldn’t be. On our trade candidates list, the presence of CJ Abrams should perk up your ears.
So far: After last season’s collapse, the Mets have been hard at work to make sure it doesn’t happen again. The additions of Marcus Semien and Devin Williams add a couple of splashy names, but the Mets also have big names to replace (Alonso, Diaz and Brandon Nimmo, who was the return for Semien).
To do: The Mets need at least one everyday outfielder, so Tucker and Bellinger make sense. If the Twins are willing to part with Byron Buxton, he would look good in center field. The bullpen needs more, with a possible reunion with Diaz the obvious but pricey option. And while the Mets have a surfeit of exciting young rotation candidates, after last season’s injury issues they need some stability, so a veteran with a track record of durability should be high on the list.
So far: After coming probably as close to winning a World Series as a team can get without actually winning it, the Blue Jays aren’t messing around this offseason. After adding Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce to a deep rotation, the Blue Jays’ hot stove campaign is already sizzling.
So far: The Mariners got out ahead of the free agent market by re-upping with first baseman Josh Naylor on a five-year contract that solidifies what has long been a problem position for Seattle.
So far: The Phillies haven’t done much, but there has been a good bit of hand-wringing by their always impatient fans.
So far: If anything, the Tigers have shown the culture they’ve created is strong enough that players don’t flee at the first opportunity. First, starter Jack Flaherty picked up his player option to stick around, then Gleyber Torres accepted the team’s qualifying offer. The Tigers haven’t done much else, but at least they have fewer holes.
So far: Houston acquired infielder Nick Allen for Mauricio Dubon and signed starting pitcher Ryan Weiss.
So far: The Cubs reworked the contract of starter Colin Rea, re-signed starter Shota Imanaga — after everyone opted out of the labyrinthine contract that might or might not serve as the basis of a Dan Brown novel — and signed reliever Phil Maton.
To do: The Cubs are in pretty good shape on the position player front, assuming prospects Owen Caissie and Kevin Alcantara are ready for prime time. That’s good because they need to add impact pitching. There is plenty of competence and decent depth already on hand, but the group lacks any semblance of star power — which is expensive. So expect more competence and more depth. If it were me, I’d trade for Pablo Lopez, then sign Ranger Suarez and Edwin Diaz.
So far: The Padres declined an option on last year’s Cody Ponce — Kyle Hart — then signed him back. They also added veteran right-handed reliever Craig Stammen. … Wait, Stammen is what? OK. Never mind.
So far: The Royals re-signed catcher Salvador Perez, tendered a contract to and re-signed infielder Jonathan India, and traded for outfielder Kameron Misner and starter Mason Black.
So far: The Orioles traded starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez for outfielder Taylor Ward, traded for reliever Andrew Kittredge and signed closer Ryan Helsley.
To do: One reason the Twins rate this high is the ongoing presence of Buxton, Lopez and Ryan — three veterans at or near the top of Minnesota’s payroll tree, and all ranking members of our trade candidates list. If the Twins’ roster trends even younger and cheaper, this ranking will tumble accordingly. Until we know just how lean the Twins want to go, it’s hard to say what they should or might do, because nothing might be the unfortunate answer.
So far: As usual, the Rays have made a lot of moves and not one would merit any kind of a headline. That doesn’t mean they weren’t good moves, it just means that even with a new owner, these are still the Rays.
To do: The return of Jonny DeLuca and the ongoing ascension of Carson Williams has the position group in good shape, pending the dealing of veterans such as Brandon Lowe. The Rays probably will target veteran rotation options from the second and third tiers of free agency, and the trade market. It won’t be make headlines, but it will probably work.
So far: The Reds haven’t done much yet, beyond re-signing closer Emilio Pagan on Wednesday, but the rumor mill has been picking up.
To do: New lead executive Chaim Bloom seems intent on embarking on the full reset the Cardinals should have begun last year if they were going to do it at all. Now the task is to move Nolan Arenado, Willson Contreras and, perhaps, Brendan Donovan for prospects. The Cardinals have young talent in the majors — Masyn Winn, Victor Scott II, Jordan Walker — and more on the horizon — Thomas Saggese, JJ Wetherholt. This doesn’t have to be a long process.
So far: It has been crickets so far for the Marlins, or whatever the aquatic equivalent to crickets might be.
So far: For the Pirates, it has been a lot of DFAs and non-tenders to clear 40-man roster space for Rule 5-eligible prospects.
So far: The White Sox acquired outfielder Everson Pereira from the Rays for starting pitcher Yoendrys Gomez and reliever Steven Wilson, and signed starter Anthony Kay.
So far: There hasn’t been much on the roster front for the Rockies, but the news has still been pretty good.
To do: The champs haven’t done much — non-tendering reliever Evan Phillips has probably been the headline move — but no team is better positioned to sit back and see how the offseason unfolds. The Dodgers’ lineup is getting pretty old, and you’d like to see a little more youth injected into the mix. Some of that is keeping opportunities open for Dalton Rushing and, later, Josue De Paula and Zyhir Hope, among others. But signing Kyle Tucker would boost the outfield, and as he’s only 28, he would make the Dodgers a little younger. The bullpen needed to be reshuffled and will be. Last year’s ploy to stock the relief crew with big-name closer types flopped and yet it feels very Dodger-like to plug Edwin Diaz into the ninth-inning role.
To do: The Yankees have a lot of work to do but obviously, given this ranking, they are building up from a strong baseline. On the pitching side, they need to add relief options, perhaps even at the back of the pen if they don’t want to ride with either David Bednar or Camilo Doval as a pure ninth-inning hammer. They also need to add rotation depth, though that’s going to be an interesting group that in theory will improve periodically next season as Carlos Rodon, Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt return from injuries. The heavier lifting needs to be done on the position side, where Cody Bellinger’s bat needs to be replaced. Tucker is an obvious fit but so, too, is Bellinger himself. The degree of the need depends on how the Yankees view the progress of Jasson Dominguez and Spencer Jones. The Yankees have a strong offensive forecast as is but there is room for an impact righty bat (Pete Alonso?) or just some better options on the right side for the bench.
To do: The young Brewers are well situated and can hope for organic improvement from maturing players, as long as they don’t start straddling the fence between winning now and sustainability. The time to strike is now, especially with Woodruff back in the fold to pair with Freddy Peralta. (Trading Peralta would be an example of fence-straddling.) It’s hard to look at this roster and not dream what it could be with a prime-time power bat in the middle of the everyday lineup. And that player could be a DH, which means that every hitter who is a free agent and a potential trade candidate can work. Let’s hope the Brewers see this offseason as a chance to splurge on that final piece of the puzzle.
To do: There’s a Schwarber-shaped hole in the Phillies’ lineup and a J.T. Realmuto-shaped void behind the plate. Ranger Suarez, Max Kepler, Jordan Romano also factor as the Phillies have quite a list of free agents. The list of roster holes might need to include Zack Wheeler if his recovery from thoracic outlet syndrome is longer than the currently projected end of May. The Phillies are already projected to exceed the first luxury tax threshold by Cot’s Contracts despite all of those high-profile expiring deals. The top of the payroll chart is Wheeler, Trea Turner, Bryce Harper, Aaron Nola and Nick Castellanos. All but Turner on that list carries a major question concerning injury or age-related decline. So what do the Phillies have to do? A lot — but the baseline, for now, appears strong enough to justify trying for another push in 2026.