Throughout the MLB offseason most fans tend to focus on their own clubs, and it can be easy to lose sight of the big picture as every other team deals with their own needs and losses.
Now that we’ve turned the page to 2026 and have reached the unofficial midway point of the offseason, it’s worth taking a step back and looking at the lay of the land.
The AL East should still rank among the most competitive divisions in baseball, but has anyone separated themselves from the pack? The Red Sox have made some notable moves to shore up their roster, but looking around the division it’s clear they’ll have their hands full.
Here’s a close look at each AL East club’s offseason and how everyone stacks up at this point in the winter.
Baltimore Orioles
Key additions: 1B Pete Alonso, OF Taylor Ward, RHP Shane Baz, RHP Ryan Helsley, RHP Andrew Kittredge, OF Leody Tavares, RHP George Soriano
Notable losses: RHP Grayson Rodriguez, LHP Jose Castillo, C Alex Jackson
Unsigned free agents: C Gary Sanchez, RHP Tomoyuki Sugano, OF Dylan Carlson, SS Jorge Mateo
A big part of why the Orioles crashed to a last place finish in 2025 was because the club’s offense badly underperformed. Baltimore ranked 24th in MLB with 4.18 runs per game, and the Orioles lacked a consistent power threat, with Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday and Jordan Westburg tying for the team lead in home runs with only 17 each.
The Orioles have made a concerted effort to address that this winter.
Baltimore made one of the biggest splashes of the offseason by signing five-time All-Star Pete Alonso to anchor its lineup. Alonso has been among baseball’s most prolific power hitters since his debut in 2019, and the Orioles doubled down on power by acquiring outfielder Taylor Ward, who hit 36 home runs for the Los Angeles Angels last season.
If they do their jobs, Henderson keeps performing at an All-Star level and the Orioles get bounce back campaigns from Adley Rutschman and Colton Cowser, Baltimore’s offense could be scary good.
But pitching remains a question mark.
The Orioles have made some moves to shore up the staff. The club swung a big trade with the Rays to bring in Shane Baz, a former top prospect who finally put together his first full healthy season as a big leaguer. They also re-signed Zach Eflin and brought in a couple of impact relievers in Ryan Helsley and Andrew Kittredge.
But top to bottom the Orioles don’t have the high-end pitching talent or depth to match the Red Sox, Yankees or Blue Jays. They also took a huge risk by moving former top prospect Grayson Rodriguez in the Ward trade. He’s been plagued by injuries throughout his career, but if he puts it together that deal could wind up being a disaster for the Orioles.
Either way, in the short term the Orioles should be better in 2026.
Boston Red Sox
Key additions: 1B Willson Contreras, RHP Sonny Gray, RHP Johan Oviedo, RHP Ryan Watson, LHP Tyler Samaniego, INF Tristen Gray, LHP Jake Bennett
Notable losses: OF Rob Refsnyder, OF Jhostynxon Garcia, RHP Richard Fitts, RHP Hunter Dobbins, LHP Steven Matz, LHP Brennan Bernardino, LHP Chris Murphy, RHP Cooper Criswell, RHP Dustin May, RHP Luis Perales, 2B Vaughn Grissom
Unsigned free agents: 3B Alex Bregman, RHP Lucas Giolito, LHP Justin Wilson, 1B Nathaniel Lowe, RHP Liam Hendriks
The Red Sox still have work to do, but as things stand today the club’s roster is roughly on par with what it was last year.
Sonny Gray is a front-of-the-rotation arm who should slot into Lucas Giolito’s old spot in the rotation, teaming with Garrett Crochet and Brayan Bello to ensure the Red Sox still have a strong 1-2-3 at the front. The 4-5 spots were a revolving door last year, but between the addition of Johan Oviedo, the return of Patrick Sandoval and Kutter Crawford from injury and up-and-coming youngsters like Connelly Early and Payton Tolle, the staff should be in a great spot.
Bullpen-wise the Red Sox need to add another lefty or two, but with Aroldis Chapman and Garrett Whitlock leading the charge the club should be well positioned in the late innings already.
Offensively, Willson Contreras gives the Red Sox a badly needed right-handed power bat who will shore up first base, but without any additional reinforcements the lineup won’t be meaningfully different from last year. If the Red Sox bring back Alex Bregman, sign Bo Bichette or make some other addition, that should help take the club from playoff contender to championship contender and make Boston a favorite to win the AL East.
New York Yankees
Key additions: RHP Cade Winquest
Notable losses: RHP Devin Williams, RHP Luke Weaver, RHP Mark Leiter Jr.
Unsigned free agents: OF Cody Bellinger, 1B Paul Goldschmidt, OF Austin Slater, RHP Jonathan Loaisiga, RHP Scott Effross, RHP Ian Hamilton, RHP Jake Cousins
For fans upset that that the Red Sox haven’t done enough this winter, it could always be worse.
The Yankees have been in a holding pattern through the first half of the offseason, with the club’s only external addition to this point being righty reliever Cade Winquest in the Rule 5 Draft. New York also brought back outfielder Trent Grisham on a qualifying offer and re-signed relievers Paul Blackburn and Ryan Yarbrough and infielder Amed Rosario to one-year deals, but other than that the Yankees haven’t made any kind of splash.
New York has also lost a number of relievers, further depleting a bullpen that already needed a lot of work.
The big question for the Yankees right now is whether or not Cody Bellinger returns. The outfielder performed well during his first season in New York and if he signs elsewhere he’d leave a big void in the Yankees lineup. It’s hard to imagine New York won’t make some kind of meaningful addition — whether Bellinger or someone else — especially when the club still has Aaron Judge in his prime and is about to get Gerrit Cole back from Tommy John surgery.
Still, the Yankees can’t sit on their hands all offseason, and without more impactful additions this club could have its hands full.
Tampa Bay Rays
Key additions: OF Cedric Mullins, LHP Steven Matz, OF Ryan Vilade, OF Jake Fraley, OF Jacob Melton, RHP Steven Wilson, RHP Yoendrys Gomez, RHP Osvaldo Bido
Notable losses: RHP Shane Baz, 2B Brandon Lowe, RHP Adrian Houser, RHP Pete Fairbanks, OF Jake Mangum, LHP Mason Montgomery, RHP Eric Orze, OF Christopher Morel, INF Tristan Gray, OF Kameron Misner, OF Everson Pereira, 1B Bob Seymour
Unsigned free agents: None.
While it’s never a good idea to count out the Rays entirely, the club appears fully committed to a rebuild and will go into 2026 as a clear favorite to finish last in the AL East.
So far this winter Tampa Bay’s two biggest moves have been trades that sent Shane Baz to Baltimore and Brandon Lowe to Pittsburgh. Those moves replenished the club’s farm system and should help Tampa Bay in the long run, but outside of outfielder Cedric Mullins and lefty Steven Matz, the Rays haven’t made any particularly notable MLB additions.
If the Rays exceed expectations and re-emerge as a contender in the American League, it’ll likely be thanks to internal development from young standouts like Junior Caminero and Chandler Simpson. Tampa Bay is also expected to finally get ace Shane McClanahan back from injury, though after missing two full seasons it’s anyone’s guess if he’ll be able to recapture his old No. 1 form.
Toronto Blue Jays
Key additions: RHP Dylan Cease, 1B/3B Kazuma Okamoto, RHP Tyler Rogers, RHP Cody Ponce, RHP Chase Lee, RHP Spencer Miles
Notable losses: LHP Justin Bruihl, LHP Easton Lucas
Unsigned free agents: SS Bo Bichette, RHP Chris Bassitt, RHP Max Scherzer, RHP Seranthony Dominguez, 1B Ty France, INF Isiah Kiner-Falefa
A few months ago the Blue Jays came within an out of winning their first World Series since 1993, and so far this offseason they’ve made a point to ensure they’ll be in the championship conversation next season as well.
The Blue Jays have already made one of the biggest splashes of the offseason by signing Dylan Cease to a seven-year, $210 million deal. He’ll team with Shane Bieber, Kevin Gausman and playoff sensation Trey Yesavage to give Toronto one of the best rotations in baseball, and Toronto also fortified their staff by adding Cody Ponce, who is coming off a breakout year in Japan, as well as top reliever Tyler Rogers.
Offensively, the Blue Jays just made another big move, reportedly signing Japanese standout Kazuma Okamoto on Saturday. He’ll boost a Blue Jays lineup that will already return largely intact, though Toronto is still waiting out shortstop Bo Bichette, who remains one of the top free agents on the market.
No matter what happens with Bichette, the Blue Jays should still enter 2026 as strong contenders to repeat as AL East champs.
