Gifting season isn’t over just yet, particularly in Major League Baseball. Teams still have a few weeks to gift themselves new players for the 2026 season. With that said, here’s a look at what every American League team should get as a gift before Spring Training starts in February.
AL East
- Blue Jays: Complimentary bat
- Orioles: Bullpen help
- Rays: Second baseman
- Red Sox: Third baseman
- Yankees: Outfield option
The AL East has turned into an arms race — and for good reason. All five teams have strong groups, and all five have made the postseason at least once since the 2023 season. The division featured three teams that made it to October last year.
Reigning American League champion Toronto has been busy this winter. The Blue Jays signed Dylan Cease, who could be atop the rotation in Toronto for a long time, and 2025 KBO MVP Cody Ponce to multi-year deals. Plus, Toronto has reconfigured the bullpen, bringing in Chase Lee and Tyler Rogers.
However, what will Toronto do, if anything, to replace Bo Bichette? If he were to sign with another team, the Blue Jays could easily slide Andres Gimenez to short. And if the Blue Jays were to sign a supporting bat to hit alongside Vladimir Guerrero Jr., like a corner outfielder, that could mean Ernie Clement shifts to second and Addison Barger goes back to third.
Baltimore has arguably been the busiest team this winter, bringing in Pete Alonso, Taylor Ward, Shane Baz, and Ryan Helsley. Plus, the Orioles reacquired Andrew Kittredge from the Chicago Cubs.
The Orioles could choose to leave it at that. Or, try to bring in another reliever.
Tampa Bay addressed a major need early in free agency after the Rays signed Cedric Mullins. However, the Rays will have a new second baseman next season after the team traded Brandon Lowe to Pittsburgh.
The Rays don’t have a slam-dunk replacement for Lowe on the 40-man roster, at least offensively. Taylor Walls could be that person, as Carson Williams played shortstop over the final few weeks, and Walls has experience at second base.
Walls may very well be the guy come Opening Day — although it would be fun in a perfect world to see the Rays target someone like Ketel Marte or Brendan Donovan.
The Red Sox have been all over the trade market this winter, bringing in Johan Oviedo (Pirates), Sonny Gray, and Willson Contreras (Cardinals). However, will Alex Bregman be in the cards for the team come 2026?
Bregman fit the Boston lineup extremely well. On the other hand, are the Sox and Bregman a match from a contract standpoint? If not, Marcelo Mayer has a clear opening.
Lastly, the Yankees have been mostly quiet this winter. New York’s notable moves saw the Yanks bring back Amed Rosario and Trent Grisham (qualifying offer), plus add a pitcher via the Rule 5 Draft.
I suppose one question to ask is whether the Yankees are comfortable with their current outfield group.
AL Central
- Guardians: Offensive upgrade in the middle infield
- Royals: Utilityman
- Tigers: An extension for Skubal
- Twins: Relievers
- White Sox: Starting pitching
It’s important to note that this is a hypothetical addition wishlist. Hence, why I have the Guardians tied with a middle infield addition.
I would not expect the Guardians to bring in someone to replace Gabriel Arias or Brayan Rocchio, two controllable players. Both have their flaws. Arias loves to expand the zone, while Rocchio isn’t a big home run threat.
With Travis Bazzana knocking on the door, he could very well insert himself into the conversation soon.
As for the Tigers, what will the team do with Tarik Skubal? And what about Casey Mize? Both Mize and Skubal can become free agents after 2026. If both were to leave, that would leave a major hole in the rotation. But if the Tigers were to prioritize one, it’s obvious who that one would be.
Skubal may price himself out of Detroit. But in a perfect world, an extension for him before Opening Day would be a dream for the Tigers — even though long-term deals can be risky with pitchers (i.e., Corbin Burnes, Stephen Strasburg)
Moving on, the White Sox expedited their rebuild when Colson Montgomery established himself as a regular. Between him, Luis Robert Jr. (assuming he’s not traded), Kyle Teel, and newcomer Munetaka Murakami, the Sox have a core in the works.
So, why not add a starter to complement that group?
The Twins traded away a lot of relievers last summer. Griffin Jax, Jhoan Duran, and Louie Varland were all shipped out, as well as Brock Stewart and the expiring contract of Danny Coulombe.
Right now, Cole Sands and Justin Topa are lined up to lead a thinner bullpen. Adding someone would make sense here if the Twins’ front office has the financial flexibility to do it.
Lastly, the Royals signed Lane Thomas and traded for Isaac Collins earlier this winter to add depth to an outfield that has sorely needed it.
A depth utilityman who can slide around the infield & outfield would still make sense.
AL West
- Angels: Starting pitching
- Astros: Starting pitching
- Athletics: Starting pitching
- Mariners: Second/third baseman
- Rangers: Starting pitching
One could nearly go down the line on this one. Aside from the Mariners, who have a deep rotation of their own and added Jose Ferrer to bolster their bullpen, all the teams in the AL West could use more starting pitching.
The Angels added Grayson Rodriguez and Alek Manoah to a rotation that won’t include the now-retired Kyle Hendricks for 2025. Tyler Anderson also went to free agency, meaning that Los Angeles will need those two, plus the youngsters on the 40-man roster, to replace the over 300 innings Anderson and Hendricks combined to log last year.
A #4/#5 starter would still make sense for an Angels team that finished 28th in starters’ ERA.
The Athletics have Luis Severino, Jeffrey Springs, and Luis Morales, plus Jacob Lopez, Mason Barnett, and Gunnar Hoglund as options to fill out the 2026 rotation. In a perfect world, would a veteran addition make sense here? Yes. That might not happen, though.
Houston will be down several arms in 2026. Aside from Framber Valdez, now a free agent, Brandon Walter, Hayden Wesneski, and Ronel Blanco all had UCL reconstruction surgery recently. Meaning, all three likely won’t be available for most, if not all, of the 2026 campaign.
The Astros have worked to address the rotation. Houston signed ex-Blue Jays pitcher Nate Pearson, brought in Ryan Weiss from the KBO, and traded away prospects Anderson Brito and Jacob Melton for Mike Burrows, a trade to help their rotation now.
Hunter Brown established himself as an ace over the last 18 months. However, a lot of questions hang around the Astros’ rotation.
Lastly, the Rangers saw Tyler Mahle, a very productive pitcher over the first half, walk to free agency.
The question, though, is this: will the four teams listed above bring in additional help?
Lastly, the Mariners lost Jorge Polanco to the Mets via free agency. Polanco wasn’t a high-end defender by any means. But, Polanco — who had 56 extra-base hits last year — will be a tough batter to replace.
Will the Mariners, though, choose to do that internally or externally?
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