It's almost impossible to grade the full body of work of any MLB front office, but we're going to try. The umbrella of 'front office' traditionally embodies transactions of any sort. Whether it be moving prospects around a farm system, signing free agents or eventually making trades, these are the decisions a general manager or president of baseball operations is inevitably judged on. Look no further than former Boston Red Sox GM Chaim Bloom — now in the same role for the St. Louis Cardinals — who is forever known as the man who traded Mookie Betts (and let Xander Bogaerts walk, though that's another story entirely).
Andrew Friedman of the Dodgers has a job for essentially as long as he wants for building a perennial powerhouse which has won back-to-back World Series. Brian Cashman's role with the Yankees is rarely in question for the same reason, minus the recent championships (apologies, New York). But not every front office is created equal. Eventually, these men and women must answer for a bad report card.
Arizona Diamondbacks
Grade: B
I give the Arizona Diamondbacks credit for sticking with Eduardo Rodriguez and taking on Nolan Arenado's salary when no one else would. This team is the right mix of veterans and young star power that could make some real noise in the postseason. Where I struggle, though, is the future of Ketel Marte. Monday marked the second time in two years Marte has gone MIA on his team seemingly without any notice, and it's why some members of the Diamondbacks clubhouse have an issue with him. That issue, involving a very important player, has gone unresolved for far too long. It's time the front office stepped in, rather than leaving it up to Torey Lovullo.
-Mark Powell, FanSided.com director
Athletics
Grade: D
I want to be generous here, if only because I’m not sure how much else the A’s front office could have done. They didn’t have a ton of money with which to work over the offseason, and they didn’t have much of value to trade at the deadline. That said, very few of their pitching dart throws have panned out, and while their extensions for homegrown players are well and good, it’s hard not to feel like this season was one giant step back.
-Chris Landers, FanSided.com MLB editor
Atlanta Braves
Grade: B-
Alex Anthopoulos is operating within the limits of Braves ownership quite flawlessly, by taking chances where other front office executives wouldn't. Over the years, he's added the likes of Chris Sale and Matt Olson, all the while letting homegrown stars like Freddie Freeman and Max Fried walk. This season, Anthopoulos didn't quite do enough to stand out. He was interested in frontline starting pitchers like Tarik Skubal and Kevin Gausman, but ultimately balked at the price tag. That could cost the Braves when it counts, especially given the long injury history of Sale and starting pitchers Atlanta relies on.
-MP
Baltimore Orioles
Grade: C-
Pete Alonso has had another very Pete Alonso season, and getting something of real value for Grayson Rodriguez was a win (even if the return for Taylor Ward wound up a bit of a disappointment). But while Baltimore’s lineup slumped for much of 2026, the real front office failure came with the pitching staff, with Chris Bassitt and Ryan Helsley both imploding and Shane Baz not taking the expected leap. They did get a haul for Adley Rutschman, though, so hey, that’s something.
-CL
Boston Red Sox
Grade: B
Can we label this one as incomplete? It hasn’t all been home runs for Craig Breslow; I wasn’t wild about the process behind either the Ranger Suarez signing or the Curtis Mead deal (even before Mead’s wrist injury). But the Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras trades look like real wins, and Caleb Durbin is finally starting to pay dividends. Overall, you’d probably grade it out somewhere above average, even if it’s been a heck of a ride getting to that point – and even if the Adley Rutschman trade has real disaster potential.
-CL
Chicago Cubs
Grade: A-
Credit where it's due, Jed Hoyer and the Cubs front office did exactly what fans have been asking for over the last half-decade. Chicago signed Alex Bregman and traded for Edward Cabrera this winter. At the trade deadline, they added Gausman and Clay Holmes. Chicago's been dealt some tough injuries all season long, but that hasn't limited Hoyer's belief that this team — much like the 2016 Cubs — could make history. We're inclined to agree.
-MP
Chicago White Sox
Grade: B+
Both the Munetaka Murakami and Anthony Kay signings worked like gangbusters, and it’s hard to be too harsh here given how much Chicago is ahead of schedule. That said, I really didn’t like how little Chris Getz did to add pitching at the deadline; the AL will never be this wide-open again and the White Sox have a chance to be real contenders.
-CL
Cincinnati Reds
Grade: D
The Reds have stunted their own growth. Cincinnati made the playoffs just last season and decided to invest in this young core. That's the good news. The bad news is they did little in the way of additions to give that same young core the tools to improve. Even at the trade deadline, the Reds sat on their hands and refused to pick a direction. That's not good enough.
-MP
Cleveland Guardians
Grade: D+
Hey, Cleveland actually kinda sorta tried at the deadline this year! Unfortunately that came in the wake of maybe the single quietest offseason in the entire sport, one that left them once again short on offense – and now buried in the Wild Card standings. It’s unclear how much skinflint ownership should be held responsible for that, but still, a homegrown pitching staff can only take you so far.
-CL
Colorado Rockies
Grade: B-
The Rockies had only one way to go, and that's up. Colorado traded the likes of Antonio Senzatela at the deadline, which was the right call. They also held onto Hunter Goodman and Jake McCarthy, decisions I can respect given where the Rockies are in their competitive window. A couple of respected draft classes has Colorado's farm system heading in the right direction.
-MP
Detroit Tigers
Grade: C-
I’d defend Scott Harris’ handling of the Tarik Skubal saga this year, whatever you want to say about whether Detroit was or was not serious about ever offering him an extension. Unfortunately, his biggest swing of the offseason, the Framber Valdez signing, has been a tremendous bust, and the offense has suffered from a lack of any sort of talent infusion over the winter. This remains a pretty promising core, and AJ Hinch and Co. have mixed and matched their way to a team that still might make the playoffs even without Skubal. It’s hard to be overly impressed by what Harris has done to supplement it, though.
-CL
Houston Astros
Grade: C+
The Astros lead the AL West at the moment, but they do so with a negative run differential and in spite of rather than because of their front office’s efforts over the past nine months. Both the Tatsuya Imai signing and the Mike Burrows trade felt sound at the time, but both have blown up in Houston’s face, and Dana Brown has been unable to balance out this righty-heavy lineup or add more starting pitching on a budget (and at a prospect deficit). But hey, through Yordan Alvarez all things are possible in the American League this year.
-CL
Kansas City Royals
Grade: F
Despite an offense that was crying out for an upgrade, Kansas City once again fiddled on the margins and paid the price in the form of a true nightmare season. Even more unforgivable was the decision not to move arms like Michael Wacha at the deadline, and while the farm system is showing steady improvement, this remains a team without a particularly bright short- or long-term future.
-CL
Los Angeles Angels
Grade: D-
The Taylor Ward-for-Grayson Rodriguez swap felt like a disaster from the moment it was finalized. The return for Jose Soriano at the deadline was fine, but hardly overwhelming. And holding onto Reid Detmers and Zach Neto could age poorly, depending on how those inevitable trades go this coming winter. Nothing the Angels could’ve done would’ve built this team into a contender in 2026, but spinning your wheels once again isn’t helping anything either.
-CL
Los Angeles Dodgers
Grade: A
No, I will not be the pundit to go against the grain when it comes to the Dodgers. MLB Pipeline just announced its farm system rankings, and even though Andrew Friedman traded away two top-100 prospects, the Dodgers still have the best system in all of baseball. Add in the back-to-back World Series (and a three-peat in the making), plus an excellent trade deadline that included dealing for a two-time AL Cy Young winner, and you might get a sense of what the rest of the league is up against.
-MP
Miami Marlins
Grade: B
I give the Marlins credit for contending with the roster they have. Miami's front office is forced to operate under impossible circumstances thanks to a cheap ownership group. The Marlins have the lowest payroll in all of baseball, yet are just a few games out of an NL Wild Card spot. Otto Lopez has emerged as under Clayton McCullough's watch, and Miami opted against trading Sany Alcantara or even Eury Perez at the deadline, despite the money it could have saved them.
-MP
Milwaukee Brewers
Grade: A+
Few front offices look better than the Brewers right now, as I grade them higher than even the Dodgers. Milwaukee was right to trade Freddy Peralta to the Mets before the season, even if their return has been a mixed back. The Brewers replaced Peralta with Jacob Misiorowski, who has flourished into an NL Cy Young candidate, plus a couple former top prospects who've regained their form thanks to a fresh start. The Brewers turn trash into treasure, and live on a budget. Matt Arnold deserves another executive of the year award.
-MP
Minnesota Twins
Grade: B
I’m hesitant to give Minnesota too much credit here, given that they largely sat on their hands over the winter and are hanging around the Wild Card race despite an ugly run differential. That said, they did pretty good work supplementing their pitching staff on the fly at the deadline, and it’s not easy trying to navigate a path forward with such an uncertain ownership situation. Much of what I’d find fault with goes beyond Jeremy Zoll, even if I might’ve considered moving Ryan Jeffers rather than letting him walk in the winter.
-CL
New York Mets
Grade: D
If I'm going to give the Brewers an A+, the other end of the Peralta trade deserves, well, this. The Mets went all-in again last winter, signing Bo Bichette and trading for Peralta and Marcus Semien, among others. I don't fully blame David Stearns for said moves backfiring, but even he is not immune from the dystopian reality of running one of the worst organizations in sports. Steve Cohen's money cannot buy a World Series. The Mets would be better-served trying to emulate Stearns' former team than outspending the Dodgers.
-MP
New York Yankees
Grade: C
This one gets dinged a good deal by just how badly Brian Cashman botched the trade deadline, failing to address the team’s beleaguered bullpen at all while only adding on the margins offensively. Add that to a winter in which the team crushed the Ryan Weathers trade but didn’t do all that much else, and … well, you can’t blame fans for feeling like another year of Aaron Judge’s prime was not maximized even before the reigning AL MVP went down with an injury. This team would look a lot different with better health, but several of Cashman’s ancillary moves haven’t aged all that well either. And he did little to prepare this team for the stretch run.
-CL
Philadelphia Phillies
Grade: B-
Dave Dombrowski has been doing this for a long time, and he is all-in on these Phillies. Dombrowski understands the Phillies championship window is coming to a close. The vast majority of their core is in their early 30's. Still, extensions given to Cristopher Sanchez and Kyle Schwarber look a whole lot better these days. The Phils traded for Luis Arraez at the deadline, as well, which could prove valuable in the postseason when hitting to all fields is a necessity, not a suggestion.
-MP
Pittsburgh Pirates
Grade: C
I really wanted to like the Pittsburgh Pirates trade deadline, but unfortunately the Bucs added bullpen help too late in the season for it to make a difference. Luke Weaver barely pitched over his first 10 games as a Pirate, and he was arguably the best closer actually available in early August. Pirates fans begged Ben Cherington to make this sort of move before the season, or in the months leading up to the deadline as the team was losing games in the seventh inning or later. Those victories would've built Pittsburgh a cushion for times like these.
-MP
San Diego Padres
Grade: B
Never put AJ Preller in a corner. The Padres were left for dead near the MLB trade deadline, with most pundits expecting them to deal closer Mason Miller. Not only did Preller keep Miller, but he traded for starting pitchers Casey Mize and Robbie Ray, giving the surging Friars a real chance to not just make the postseason, but make some noise once they get there. Sure, the farm system is cooked, but prospects always sound better in theory than reality. If Preller is put out to pasture by new ownership, he will do so on his own terms.
-MP
San Francisco Giants
Grade: D
If AJ Preller is what making educated swings looks like, consider Buster Posey the opposite. The hiring on Tony Vitello has been an abject disaster, while additions Rafael Devers and Willy Adames still haven't fully acclimated to San Francisco. The Giants are a team that should've entered a full rebuild years ago, but put it off. Eventually it'll cost them more than just one bad year.
-MP
Seattle Mariners
Grade: D
Seattle’s regression this season isn’t all on Jerry DiPoto. That said, he’s consistently refused to push his chips in despite a homegrown core that’s cracked the contention window wide open, and he’s paid the price for it in 2026. Adding only Brendan Donovan to this offense over the winter was asking for trouble, and while the deadline acquisition of Taylor Ward should help in theory, it doesn’t feel like nearly enough. Eventually this team is going to have to decide how badly it wants to finally get to the World Series.
-CL
St. Louis Cardinals
Grade: B+
After that intro, who would've thought we'd give Chaim Bloom a passing grade? Say what you will about Bloom, he is the right man at the right time for these Cardinals, who've outplayed everyone's expectations for them this season. St. Louis has its young core, including Jordan Walker and Joshua Baez. The Cardinals sold the right players at the deadline, but still gave the 2026 team a real chance at the postseason. Don't look now, but they're only three back of the final NL Wild Card spot.
-MP
Tampa Bay Rays
Grade: A
It’s hard to give any other grade to a front office that built the top seed in the AL on a shoestring budget, even if their offseason additions were a bit of a mixed bag. Nick Martinez has proven to be one of the best signings of the winter, while last year’s deal for Griffin Jax continues to pay big dividends – now in the rotation rather than the bullpen – and Liam Hicks has stabilized the catching situation after coming over at the deadline.
-CL
Texas Rangers
Grade: C-
Maybe this seems harsh for a team that remains smack in the AL Wild Card hunt, but their -47 run differential points to how far away Texas is from true contention. And yet, despite that, both the MacKenzie Gore and Brandon Nimmo trades felt like moves made by a front office that thought they were on the verge of a breakthrough for … some reason. Nimmo has been solid this year, but his contract is a mess moving forward, while Gore has been exactly as frustrating in Arlington as he was in DC. The result is a team that didn’t improve its short-term odds much while clouding the long-term picture, and a stand-pat deadline hardly helped matters.
-CL
Toronto Blue Jays
Grade: B-
It’s hard to hang too much of a disappointing Jays season on Ross Atkins. The starting rotation was largely done in by injuries, and he did well to acquire an ascending starter in Jose Soriano for 2027 and beyond. I do think it’s fair to ding him for not doing enough to add firepower to this lineup, though, even if he couldn’t have foreseen injuries to Anthony Santander and Addison Barger. It was clear at the time that Toronto needed someone to support Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and guard against George Springer’s regression, but instead they let Bo Bichette walk and settled for Kazuma Okamoto.
-CL
Washington Nationals
Grade: B
The Nationals are right where they need to be. Washington's rebuild was bound to take some time, but any lineup with James Wood and CJ Abrams in it for the foreseeable future has a chance to contend. The next step for the Nats front office is to build around those stars, specifically when it comes to the starting rotation and bullpen. Trading for Connelly Early, formerly of the Red Sox, was a nice start.
-MP
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