The MLB offseason is moving along at a very deliberate pace, but that doesn't mean we haven't seen major upgrades around the league. Kyle Schwarber and Brad Keller in Philly. Pete Alonso, Taylor Ward and Ryan Helsley in Baltimore. Edwin Díaz in L.A. Dylan Cease, Cody Ponce and Tyler Rogers in Toronto. Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras in Boston. The list goes on.
A lot of significant dominoes are yet to fall — Ketel Marte, Kyle Tucker, Cody Bellinger, Alex Bregman, Bo Bichette, Tarik Skubal (?) — so it's a bit early in the offseason to panic. For some fan bases, however, the anxiety is becoming unbearable. Here are a handful of the offseason's most disappointing teams so far, and some less-heralded solutions to what ails them, just in case Tucker or Skubal doesn't walk through that door.
San Francisco Giants: SP Chris Bassitt
The San Francisco Giants entered the offseason as a popular sleeper pick to sign Tucker, Cody Bellinger, Tatsuya Imai and several of MLB's top free agents. Those expectations were misplaced, though, as Buster Posey appears to be operating with his hands tied by ownership.
All the same, San Francisco could use a bit of rotation depth behind Logan Webb and Robbie Ray. Injuries have too often left the Giants' starting pitching in a state of disarray in recent years. The goal should be to find, at least, a durable No. 3 or No. 4 starter. Enter Chris Bassitt.
Age is a factor with Bassitt, 36, but he has made 30-plus starts and pitched 170-plus innings in four straight years. The man is a machine, reliant on off-speed and breaking stuff rather than pure velocity. That should, hopefully, allow Bassitt to age with a bit of grace. He can eat innings, at the very least, and that's what the Giants need.
Cincinnati Reds: 1B Luis Arráez
... Really? Yeah, why not? Why not! There is (understandable) trepidation when it comes to Luis Arráez. He's an odd duck in the modern game — a contact maven devoid of power and lacking as a defender. Arráez consistently hits around or above .300 and sits in MLB's 100th percentile for strikeout rate. The man knows how to battle, work a count and get on base.
In today's MLB, however, just "getting on base" is only a small fraction of the equation when evaluating a hitter's impact. Arráez is sluggish on the bases, mostly poking singles or doubles into the gaps and then waiting on his teammates to drive him home. But Arráez is also a three-time All-Star at 28 years old. The pedigree is real, and he offers a reasonably high floor offensively.
Arráez has spent time all over the infield defensively (although never with much success glove-wise). The Cincinnati Reds would need to get creative, perhaps bumping Spencer Steer to the outfield or icing Ke'Bryan Hayes in certain matchups. But even if he's just a situational bat at the end of the day, Arráez has value — and he shouldn't cost Cincinnati, a team in desperate need of offensive stability, an arm and a leg.
Cleveland Guardians: DH Marcell Ozuna
Last season was complicated for Marcell Ozuna. The Atlanta Braves attempted to carve out at-bats for Sean Murphy and Drake Baldwin, subsequently leaving Ozuna on the pine more often than he's used to. The value in league circles for a mid-30s DH is typically muted, but Ozuna — despite his relative struggles — is still a damn good hitter.
He cranked 21 home runs and drove in 68 runs across 487 at-bats, posting a .756 OPS and 113 OPS+. The year prior, he finished fourth in NL MVP voting. Ozuna hits the baseball incredibly hard and imposes enough fear on the opposing pitcher to maintain a healthy walk rate (15.9 percent, in MLB's 98th percentile).
This Cleveland Guardians team desperately needs more pop in the heart of the lineup. Kyle Manzardo made a strong first impression as a rookie. Chase DeLauter and Travis Bazzana are coming behind him as top prospects who can rip it. But even if it's a one-year deal, Ozuna has the goods to protect José Ramírez in the heart of the order and pop a few more dingers than Cleveland fans are used to.
New York Yankees: SP Michael Lorenzen
Michael Lorenzen, 34, hits free agency coming off of a down year in Kansas City. He made 27 appearances (26 starts) and posted a 4.64 ERA. There are faint positive indicators, though: His strikeout rate (8.1 per nine innings) reached its highest mark since 2020. He still limits walks and avoids excessive hard contact. The off-speed pitches, particularly his changeup, can be real weapons. The fastball can be volatile, but when it's on, Lorenzen gets decent swing-and-miss numbers.
Last season was a roller coaster for Lorenzen, who began strong before his metrics plummeted and an oblique injury mucked things up. Highly adapatable over the course of his career, Lorenzen has taken on many different roles and adopted many different approaches in his career.
The New York Yankees are in the position of needing a bridge starter, essentially, until Gerrit Cole, Clarke Schmidt and Carlos Rodón can recover from injuries. Lorenzen isn't the sexiest option, but he has the pedigree to warrant consideration. Better yet: He's an experienced reliever and can transition to the bullpen as needed. New York can figure out which role suits him best at this stage.
New York Mets: OF Max Kepler
If the New York Mets whiff on Tucker, Bellinger and the top of the free agent market, the outfield need will take on greater urgency. Top prospect Carson Benge is a strong candidate to start on Opening Day. If the Mets are comfortable with him in center field, might Max Kepler be worth a call?
This idea probably brings a lot of joy to Phillies fans, which isn't the greatest sign for the Mets. Kepler's reputation in Philly was less than stellar in 2025 and he finished with a .691 OPS and 88 OPS+, knocking 18 home runs in 417 at-bats. The 32-year-old German has broadly fallen off over the past couple seasons, but Kepler feels like a potential low-risk, high-reward signing toward the bottom of the offseason barrel.
Just two years ago, Kepler hit 24 home runs and posted an .816 OPS in Minnesota. Over the final two months of last season, Kepler's luck began to turn, as he posted a .791 OPS over his last 33 games. For the campaign overall, his expected slugging (.430) sat well above his actual mark (.391), suggesting that a lot of Kepler's early-season woes boiled down to bad luck. He's a fine defender in the outfield corners, but Kepler can generate real power from the left side and he's not undisciplined in the box. New York can keep him in their back pocket if bigger free agent targets fall through.
Detroit Tigers: OF Harrison Bader
The Detroit Tigers need a bit of oomph in their lineup, and while Harrison Bader's production tends to fluctuate wildly year to year, he was sensational in 2025. He'd effectively replace Parker Meadows as the everyday center fielder, offering comparable value as a defender and a baserunner with substantially more upside as a hitter.
If Bader gets the two- or three-year deal that has been rumored in some circles, Detroit might want to think twice. But if the market collapses and the Tigers can get him on the cheap, it's a worthy swing. Bader, at the very least, plays with an ineffable spunk and self-confidence that can elevate the energy of a clubhouse and hopefully spark improvements on the field. Those are vague and abstract traits, but it was on full display in Philadelphia after the trade deadline.
Bader posted an .824 OPS and 124 OPS+ in 50 games as a Phillie (he put up a .778 OPS and 113 OPS+ in his first 96 games with Minnesota, for reference). The year before, Bader was 1.2 fWAR player, compared to 3.2 fWAR in 2025. It's not unreasonable to be more than a little skeptical of his 2025 production as any sort of barometer. But Bader is a lot of fun, and if he can recapture that magic in Detroit, it meaningfully elevates the Tigers' ceiling. He can tap into all five tools when he's rolling.
Chicago Cubs: 3B Nolan Arenado
This would require the St. Louis Cardinals eating a significant chunk of the $31 million Nolan Arenado is owed over the next two seasons. That said, Arenado fits the Chicago Cubs' M.O. rather perfectly. He's an exceptional defender at third base, even as he ages into his mid-30s. The defensive quartet of Arenado, Dansby Swanson, Nico Hoerner and Michael Busch would give Chicago one of the best infields in MLB.
Now, what about the offense? Last season was an undeniable struggle for Arenado, who finished with a .666 OPS and 87 OPS+. But the goal of this article is to find under-the-radar solutions. Matt Shaw could relegate Arenado to spot starts at the corners, and Tyler Austin removes the overt need for a Busch platoon at first base. But — but! — Arenado has swung the bat well at Wrigley historically, and he comes with a certain unshakable pedigree.
It's worth seeing what he looks like in a better situation, especially (and only) if the Cardinals can make this a minimal financial investment. Arenado was an All-Star in 2023 and an above-average hitter as recently as 2024. He still doesn't strike out much. This is certainly not a risk-free trade. But, if the Cubs want to mitigate their reliance on Shaw and Austin, Arenado could be worth a reclamation effort.
San Diego Padres: SP Zach Eflin
The San Diego Padres defied the odds to re-sign Michael King, but the rotation still needs a facelift after Cease's departure. In a perfect world, AJ Preller would crack into ownership's hidden safe and pay an ace, like Tatsuya Imai or Framber Valdez. But that ain't happening. So the next-best move might be a buy-low bounce-back candidate in the vein of Zach Eflin.
Last season in Baltimore was an abject nightmare for Eflin, who posted a 5.93 ERA and 1.42 WHIP in 14 starts (71.1 innings). He dealt with injuries and just couldn't find his rhythm. There weren't a ton of redeeming qualities. He limited walks, but got hammered in the zone, so that didn't matter much.
The prior season, however, Eflin made 28 starts between Tampa Bay and Baltimore, posting a far more palatable 3.59 ERA and 1.15 WHIP. That includes a 2.60 ERA in nine starts for Baltimore after the deadline. Go back to 2023, and Eflin's strikeout rate (26.5 percent) was more than 10 ticks higher than his 2025 mark (16.2 percent). Eflin typically relies on groundball contact more than K's, but he has a deep arsenal and has shown himself capable of flirting with ace-level production when he's right. If he can get healthy and solidify the middle of San Diego's rotation, that's a huge potential win for both parties.