Yes, the 2026 World Baseball Classic is over, but don’t go into a cave just yet: The 2026 MLB season commences March 25, and there are plenty of big names who will debut in new places.
With that in mind, here’s a ranking of how the top 10 MLB free agent signings – as measured by total money – will impact their new teams in the 2026 MLB season.
Note: Players who re-signed with their respective teams (e.g., Cody Bellinger with the New York Yankees and Kyle Schwarber with the Philadelphia Phillies) aren’t included because they didn’t change teams/aren’t debuting in MLB in the 2026 season.
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Alex Bregman spent the first nine seasons of his MLB career with the Astros (2016-24), with whom he won two World Series: 2017 and 2022. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images) <!–>
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The soon-to-be 32-year-old Bregman remains one of the best third basemen in the sport. He has a crisp swing from the right side of the plate, is a comforting presence at the hot corner and capable of being an All-Star in any given year.
At the same time, the veteran infielder’s impact on the Cubs in terms of wins and losses next season is a gray area, because they already had Matt Shaw — who has been stellar defensively — at third base and Bregman’s arrival was essentially in place of re-signing star Kyle Tucker from an offensive potency perspective. Is Bregman an overall upgrade at third base for Chicago and a viable way for it to replenish some of the outgoing production of Tucker? Yes. Is it a move that takes the Cubs from “very good” to “great?” Unlikely, though, Bregman fits the Cubs’ timeline of being a true contender in the near future.
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Tatsuya Imai posted a career 3.15 ERA across his eight seasons pitching in the Nippon Professional Baseball league. (Photo by Houston Astros/Getty Images) <!–>
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Houston signed Imai to be a rotation pillar. In what was his last season pitching in the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league, the right-hander, who has leaned on his fastball and slider, recorded a 1.92 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 178 strikeouts over 163.2 innings pitched in 2025 across 24 appearances. While a minor sample size, Imai hasn’t surrendered a run in six innings pitched for the Astros in spring training, while giving up just three baserunners and posting seven strikeouts.
All that said, Imai is ranked just ninth on this list because his arrival coincides with the departure of longtime Astros ace Framber Valdez. Imai may very well become a rotation linchpin for Houston, but in a realistic, best-case scenario for 2026, he’s equaling the impact of Valdez.
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Kazuma Okamoto totaled 30-plus home runs in the Nippon Professional Baseball league from 2018-23. (Photo by Mark Taylor/Getty Images) <!–>
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Okamoto can rake, and that’s what the Blue Jays are hoping the 29-year-old corner infielder does for them. While also having his fair share of highlight-reel defensive gems, Okamoto provides juice in the power department. Possessing raw power from the right side, he posted a career .521 slugging percentage in the NPB league. Okamoto can also provide Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with a day off at first base, as the former has extensive experience playing first, too.
Much like Bregman to the Cubs, though, Okamoto’s signing came concurrent with the departure of career-long Toronto shortstop Bo Bichette. While the two players don’t play the same position, it’s the idea that a portion of resources allocated to Okamoto would’ve gone to Bichette, with Toronto changing its infield alignment. With Okamoto at third, Andres Gimenez and Ernie Clement likely form the Blue Jays’ 2026 double-play duo.
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Kyle Tucker has been an All-Star in each of the last four seasons. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images) <!–>
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The Dodgers needed another outfielder, so they decided to sign the best one on the open market. Aside from Shohei Ohtani, one could make the case that Tucker, a two-time Silver Slugger, is the Dodgers’ best hitter and all-around best pure position player from the jump. He’s an impact, left-handed hitter who seldom strikes out and has traditionally been a commendable right fielder. Tucker deepens a Los Angeles outfield rotation that likely needed another starter to join Teoscar Hernandez and Andy Pages.
The star outfielder fills a void for the Dodgers and had a case for being the No. 1 free agent of the offseason. But given the already historical nature of the team’s offense that includes MVP winners like Ohtani, Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts in the wake of back-to-back World Series titles, Tucker more so reinforces the identity of an elite lineup, rather than serving as the “missing piece” — hence, him coming in at No. 7.
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Pete Alonso led the National League with 41 doubles in 2025. (Photo by Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images) <!–>
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After finishing no worse than seventh in runs in 2023 and 2024 — two seasons that saw Baltimore make the playoffs — while being second in the sport in home runs in 2024, the Orioles fell off the map in 2025, finishing 24th in runs and last in the American League East at 75-87. Determined to get a prolific offense back on track, Baltimore acquired outfielder Taylor Ward from the Los Angeles Angels and threw the big bucks at Alonso, who’s arguably the most dangerous, right-handed power threat in the sport aside from Aaron Judge.
Alonso will complement the Orioles’ bright positional core – Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman and Jordan Westburg, among others – with an impact bat in his prime. Last season, Alonso finished in the top three percent of MLB in average exit velocity (93.5 mph) and has averaged 39.0 home runs and 111.4 RBIs per season since 2021. Alonso’s arrival in Baltimore doesn’t crack the top five, however, because, while the Orioles made several moves to improve their starting rotation (e.g., acquiring Shane Baz and signing Chris Bassitt), that aspect of their team will make or break a playoff push. Who Baltimore’s ace is remains a question coming off a year when its rotation was 24th in ERA (4.65) and 21st in WHIP (1.32).
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Bo Bichette led the American League in hits in 2021 and 2022. (Photo by Jasen Vinlove/Miami Marlins/Getty Images) <!–>
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This signing is layered. For starters, the Mets spent handsomely on one of the best offensive infielders in the sport, as Bichette, who’s a career .294 hitter, is a balanced hitter who swings for both contact and power and his strikeouts have dropped of late – Bichette totaled 181 hits in 2025, compared to 91 strikeouts. Investing in a well-rounded infielder and player in his prime is an auspicious play. The “layered” element to the Mets signing Bichette is that he was brought to Queens to play third base, a position he has never played at the MLB level or MiLB ranks.
Bichette is among the many new faces in New York’s offense — with Marcus Semien, Jorge Polanco and Luis Robert Jr. being the others — who are replacing the outgoing Alonso and Brandon Nimmo, among others. In thought, Bichette should be able to make a full-time transition from shortstop to third base. While high-profile examples, Alex Rodriguez and Cal Ripken Jr. (granted, Ripken had spurts where he played third base earlier in his career) successfully made a full-time switch from shortstop to third base during the thick of their respective careers. That said, it’s still a major adjustment, and it will likely take Bichette some time to be acclimated.
4. Los Angeles Dodgers RHP Edwin Diaz – Three-year, $69 million deal
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Edwin Diaz is a three-time All-Star. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images) <!–>
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The Dodgers made a concerted effort to improve their bullpen last offseason, signing Tanner Scott (four-year, $72 million deal) and Kirby Yates (one-year, $13 million deal); it didn’t work out, as Scott (4.74 ERA and MLB-high 10 blown saves) and Yates (5.23 ERA) each struggled. Moreover, the Dodgers’ bullpen was tied for 20th in both ERA (4.27) and WHIP (1.33). Los Angeles got around its roster weakness by using starter Roki Sasaki out of the bullpen in the postseason. The Dodgers can’t bank on that working again, which led to them signing the exact pitcher they needed: Diaz, an elite closer.
The hard-throwing right-hander continues to blow his four-seamer past hitters and get them to whiff at his slider. Last season, Diaz recorded a 1.63 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 98 strikeouts across 66.1 innings pitched. Yes, the Dodgers are the defending, back-to-back World Series champions, but they had to get a shutdown reliever for the back end of their bullpen. Diaz fits the bill. By the way, the Dodgers only won 93 games in the regular season and had to play in the Wild Card Series – remarkably, there was room to improve.
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Framber Valdez owns a career 3.36 ERA. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) <!–>
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Starting pitching has been the Tigers’ identity the past two years, and that’s not just because back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal takes the mound for them every five days. Quietly, though, Detroit’s rotation deteriorated down the stretch of 2025, underscored by right-hander Reese Olson suffering a season-ending shoulder injury in July, which will keep him off an MLB mound next season. The excuse for the Tigers to add a top-of-the-rotation force was there, and they acted by signing Valdez, a two-time All-Star.
Valdez is a proven commodity and forms an elite, one-two rotation punch with Skubal. The sinkerballing southpaw pitches deep into games – Valdez has led the AL in complete games in two of the last four seasons and thrown eight complete games over that span – evades trouble and has made 16 career postseason starts. He makes a reliable Detroit rotation an elite one and makes the Tigers the definitive team to beat in the AL Central.
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Ranger Suarez posted a 137 ERA+ in 2025. (Photo by Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) <!–>
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The narrative with the Red Sox has been that their starting rotation always holds them back. That ends in 2026 with Suarez in the mix. Suarez is among the best left-handed pitchers in the sport. An All-Star in 2024, he recorded a combined 3.59 ERA from 2022-25 with the Phillies. Suarez also posted a combined 1.48 ERA across 42.2 postseason innings pitched for Philadelphia and finds success with a consistent, five-pitch arsenal: sinker, changeup, cutter, curveball and four-seamer.
Suarez gives Boston a fearsome one-two rotation punch with Garrett Crochet, who was the runner-up for the 2025 AL Cy Young Award, while putting the finishing touches on a stout rotation that includes Brayan Bello and fellow offseason acquisitions Johan Oviedo and Sonny Gray. Whether the Red Sox make the playoffs and become contenders next season is reliant on burgeoning position players like Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer and Romy Gonzalez taking the next step, not their starting rotation.
1. Toronto Blue Jays RHP Dylan Cease – Seven-year, $210 million deal
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Dylan Cease led AL pitchers with 6.4 wins above replacement in 2022. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune via Getty Images) <!–>
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One could argue that the biggest risk this offseason was the Blue Jays giving Cease $210 million, but with great risk can come great reward. If this signing hits, Toronto gets exactly what it needed: an ace.
Cease’s career has been a mixed bag. On one hand, Cease, who primarily relies on his four-seamer and slider, logs strikeouts at a high clip, has been durable and finished second in 2022 AL Cy Young Award voting and fourth in 2024 NL Cy Young Award voting. On the other hand, these are the former San Diego Padres‘ starter’s ERA totals from 2022-25: 2.20, 4.58, 3.47, 4.55. One is always entering the year asking, “What version of Cease am I getting this season?”
True, the Blue Jays were one win away from winning the 2025 World Series and right-hander Trey Yesavage looks like a future star. At the same time, Toronto’s starting rotation was 20th in ERA (4.34) and 17th in WHIP (1.27) last season; midseason pickup Shane Bieber is dealing with forearm fatigue; Jose Berrios has a stress fracture in his elbow; Bassitt now pitches for the AL East-rival Orioles. They needed a boost, and Cease has the upside and career track record of being able to pitch like an ace. The last time that Cease had a change of scenery, in 2024, he put together one of the best seasons of his career coming off a down year. Cease’s career tendencies (All-Star-caliber campaign, followed by a down year, and then the trend repeats itself) support the notion that he will pitch at a high level and move the needle for the Blue Jays.
Link to Original Article - on Fox Sports
