With the upcoming MLB season beginning on March 27, the offseason has not disappointed with all the trades and updates.
Former New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto was unexpectedly sent across the city to the Mets, signing the largest contract in professional sports history. Soto’s contract pays out $765 million over 15 years.
In addition to the $765 million, he is also entitled to many benefits like free use of a luxurious suite and up to four premium tickets at all home games. Soto also gets bonuses for winning any awards during the regular season; for example, if he wins the MVP, he earns a $500,000 bonus.
Another surprising move this offseason was the Baltimore Orioles moving starting pitcher Corbin Burnes to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Following an All-Star caliber season, Burnes has been a cornerstone of the Milwaukee Brewers franchise since he was drafted in 2018. During these years, he has led the National League in strikeouts and earned run average at different points.
A technical advancement happening outside of the trades is the use of the Automatic Balls and Strikes system (ABS), which has been used throughout the 2025 Spring Training season as a trial run. This system has a computer send the umpires the correct calls, and the umpires would announce them to the players, whether they got the call right initially or if the ABS overturns the call.
Coming off a World Series victory, the Los Angeles Dodgers are the favorite to win this season with the Atlanta Braves and Yankees trailing close behind.
Over the offseason, the Dodgers signed one of Japan’s best prospects, Roki Sasaki, who recently broke the world record streak of consecutive strikeouts. The anticipation of the Dodgers’ starting pitching rotation is tremendous this year.
Over in the American League, the Yankees signed Paul Goldschmidt, a four-time Gold Glove-winning infielder. They signed the veteran to a one-year deal, hoping for him to make an immediate impact on the infield.
The Yankees also changed their infamous facial hair policy that stated players could not grow a beard or any facial hair. Subsequently, the players are allowed to grow a “well-groomed beard” but still are not allowed to grow long hair.
On a less winning team in the National League, All-Star starter and Rookie of the Year pitcher Paul Skenes is coming off one of the best rookie seasons in MLB history. With that being said, it’s highly anticipated to see if he can keep that up, or if teams will figure him out.