The New Year marks the halfway point of the offseason, with just over two months since the Dodgers won the World Series. Pitchers and catchers are set to report to Spring Training in a little over six weeks.
Twenty-six of MLBTR’s Top 50 free agents have already signed, including six of the top 10 and Roki Sasaki. More than half the money has been spent, with Alex Bregman being the only unsigned player in the top six free agents list. The offseason is progressing at a normal pace, slightly faster than last year.
Using MLBTR’s Contract Tracker, we’ll look at each team’s activity in the free agent market starting from November 4. This excludes deals signed during the exclusive negotiation window for a team’s own free agents.
This analysis focuses solely on free agent signings. Teams like the Blue Jays, Angels, Cubs, and Yankees have made trades for highly-paid players, while the Dodgers extended Tommy Edman for $64.5MM.
Below is a list of teams ordered by overall spending in free agency:
1. New York Mets
Total guarantees: $917.25MM
2. Los Angeles Dodgers
Total spending: $287MM
3. New York Yankees
Total guarantees: $235.5MM
4. Arizona Diamondbacks
Total guarantees: $210MM
5. San Francisco Giants
Total guarantees: $182MM
6. Texas Rangers
Total guarantees: $130.5MM
7. Los Angeles Angels
Total guarantees: $80.25MM
8. Baltimore Orioles
Total guarantees: $71MM
9. Athletics
Total guarantees: $70.95MM
10. Houston Astros
Total guarantees: $60MM
….
* Counting Wacha as a free agent deal rather than an extension would push Kansas City to 12th in total spending