How AL Teams Have Addressed Their Weakest Positions Of 2025

We covered the National League League earlier today, so now let’s see what the American League’s 15 teams have done (so far) to address their least-productive positions from the 2024 campaign.  Baseball Reference’s position-by-position bWAR breakdown is our guide, so let’s dive in…

Angels (Catcher, -0.5 bWAR): Most of the Angels’ offseason moves to date have understandably focused on pitching.  However, Los Angeles had plenty of pressing needs around the diamond that haven’t really been touched, including a -0.2 bWAR in right field and even 0.0 numbers at both second and third base in 2025.  Vaughn Grissom was picked up in a trade with the Red Sox, but the former top prospect is more of a reclamation project than a real answer for the Halos at second base.  Cody Bellinger is the biggest outfield name linked to the Angels on the rumor mill, but the trade of Taylor Ward to the Orioles might open up the right field spot for Jo Adell, which would allow the Angels to improve at that corner spot while creating a new vacancy in center field.  Beyond all of these other positions, catcher was actually the Halos’ biggest problem area of 2025, and the team got less from the catcher spot than any other team in baseball.  Despite the struggles of both Logan O’Hoppe and Travis d’Arnaud, it doesn’t appear as if L.A. is planning to focus too heavily behind the plate, perhaps because the club simply has so many other concerns up and down the roster.

Astros (First base/left field, 0.3 bWAR): Christian Walker disappointed in the first season of his three-year, $60MM free agent deal, leaving Houston still looking for stability at the position even in the post-Jose Abreu era.  Sliding Isaac Paredes over to first base would be an answer, except Walker isn’t receiving much interest on the trade market, leaving the Astros with an overcrowded infield.  If Paredes is used at DH, it forces Yordan Alvarez or perhaps Jose Altuve again in to left field duty, neither of which is an ideal situation.  It makes for an imperfect surplus for the Astros, and the team will need a bounce-back year from Walker to at least elevate things to “good problem to have” status.  If the infield situation is solved, the Astros could be looking for a more traditional left fielder, and preferably a player that swings from the left side to balance out the righty-heavy lineup.

Athletics (Third base, -0.3 bWAR): New acquisition Jeff McNeil is expected to primarily play second base, but he has experience at the hot corner and could end getting at least some action at third depending on how the A’s deploy their infielders.  McNeil will play pretty much every day in some capacity, but guys like Max Muncy, Darell Hernaiz, Max Schuemann, Brett Harris and Zack Gelof will all be utilized at second or third base.

Blue Jays (Second base/left field, 2.2 bWAR): Toronto wins the prize for the best “worst” positions of any team in baseball, as plenty of clubs would be more than satisfied with a 2.2 bWAR.  Bo Bichette’s free agency has left the second base spot in flux, as it is assumed that Andres Gimenez will move over to shortstop if Bichette departs….or perhaps even if he re-signs.  Gimenez is a much better defender than Bichette, and having Gimenez at shortstop and Bichette permanently moving to second base would greatly help the Blue Jays from a defensive standpoint.  If Bichette leaves entirely, Ernie Clement and/or Davis Schneider would likely take over the keystone.  As for left field, the current plan is to have George Springer and a healthy Anthony Santander split time between the DH spot and a corner outfield position, with left as the likeliest defensive placement.  This plan would remain in place even if the Jays signed Kyle Tucker, another rumored Toronto target.

Guardians (Right field, -1.8 bWAR): Steven Kwan continues to be a one-man band in Cleveland’s outfield, as Kwan’s 3.7 bWAR single-handedly kept the Guards’ outfield out of sub-replacement range.  Instead, the Guardians had “only” the third-worst cumulative outfield bWAR (0.8) of any team in baseball, as the lack of production in right field was followed by a -0.9 bWAR from the Guards’ center fielders.  Star prospect Chase DeLauter is the top candidate for an Opening Day role in either center or right field, and fellow rookies George Valera and Petey Halpin might battle for the other position if Cleveland wanted a primary outfield mix of Kwan and the youngsters.  While the Guardians are forever hesitant about spending money or blocking any homegrown prospects, adding a veteran outfield bat to help out at least a platoon capacity in center or right would help solidify the outfield picture.

Mariners (Right field, 0.5 bWAR): While Luke Raley and Victor Robles struggled in 2025, Dominic Canzone hit well and rather unexpectedly emerged as a regular against right-handed pitching down the stretch.  Rob Refsnyder was recently signed as a lefty-mashing element to Seattle’s position-player mix, and it is easy to see Refsnyder starting in right field whenever a southpaw is on the mound.  The Mariners’ DH spot is also still open, leaving plenty of room for the team to find at-bats for any of Refsnyder, Canzone, Robles, Raley in right field, and for any other regulars that could use a partial off-day in the DH capacity.

Orioles (Center field, 0.1 bWAR): Leody Taveras was signed to a one-year, $2MM to provide some depth up the middle, but a healthy season from Colton Cowser is what the O’s are counting on in terms of a center field upgrade.  After finishing second in AL Rookie of the Year voting in 2024, the sophomore slump came hard for Cowser in terms of both injuries and a downturn at the plate.  Cowser was limited to 92 games due to a left thumb fracture and a concussion, plus he rather unwisely tried to play through the last three months of the season while dealing with two broken ribs.  There has been some speculation that Taveras was added as depth in advance of a possible trade of Cowser or Dylan Beavers, if Baltimore opted to move one of its talented young outfielders in change for a front-of-the-rotation pitcher.

Rangers (Bullpen -0.6 bWAR): Despite posting the fifth-best bullpen ERA in baseball, Texas had the second-lowest bWAR of any relief corps, ahead of only the Nationals in 2025.  It’s an unusual discrepancy that perhaps speaks to the vagaries of the WAR formula, yet Rangers relievers were only 17th in SIERA (3.86), 20th in strikeout rate (22.3%), and the fifth-best BABIP (.277) in the league.  Ironically, the bullpen is now a need more because many of the relievers who delivered such good numbers for the Rangers have now signed elsewhere — Shawn Armstrong headed to the Guardians, while Hoby Milner, Jacob Webb, and Phil Maton all joined the Cubs.  Chris Martin decided to forego retirement for another year with his hometown team, and the Rangers have also brought in Tyler Alexander, Alexis Diaz, and Carter Baumler to help fill some of the holes left open by the departed relievers.

Rays (Left field, 0.9 bWAR): The center field and right field slots only generated 1.0 bWAR apiece, so overall, the Rays didn’t get a ton from their outfield in 2025.  Cedric Mullins was signed to a one-year, $7MM deal to become the new primary center fielder, and Jacob Melton, Jake Fraley and Ryan Vilade were also brought in to further bolster the outfield mix.  Jonny DeLuca and Richie Palacios should both contribute more after being injured for almost all of last season, though Palacios could see now work at second base now that Brandon Lowe has been traded.  In classic Tampa roster churn fashion, several players (i.e. Christopher Morel, Jake Mangum, Everson Pereira, Kameron Misner) who got a good deal of playing time last year have already been traded away.  It’s fair to guess that more turnover is coming between now and Opening Day, as the Rays are forever looking to build for both the future and present.

Red Sox (First base, 0.3 bWAR): The trade for Willson Contreras instantly turns a weak spot into a potential strength.  Contreras’ right-handed bat should play nicely in Fenway Park, and it adds balance to the lefty-heavy top of Boston’s lineup.  Paredes, Kazuma Okamoto, and Pete Alonso were among the many other first base names linked to the Red Sox in reports, and Paredes or Okamoto might still emerge as possibilities at third base, rather than across the diamond.  Triston Casas’ knee surgery contributed to Boston’s lack of production from the first base spot in 2025, and a healthy Casas can both complement Contreras or provide help at DH next year, but there continues to be plenty of speculation that Casas will be traded.

Royals (Right field, -1.9 bWAR): The Royals fielded one of baseball’s worst outfields in 2024, and they were almost literally the worst in 2025 — only the Rockies had a lower outfield bWAR than Kansas City’s cumulative -0.7 mark.  The left field spot generated -0.7 bWAR, while Kyle Isbel’s excellent defense at least brought the center field position up to semi-respectability.  K.C. has already been more active in addressing their outfield, landing Isaac Collins in a trade with the Brewers and signing Lane Thomas as a bounce-back candidate for further depth.  The club is still on the hunt for more outfield help, and acquiring a better option for right field in particular would be ideal, given Thomas’ struggles in 2025 and Jac Caglianone’s unproductive rookie season.

Tigers (Shortstop, 0.7 bWAR): Javier Baez’s comeback season fell apart over the final three months of the season, and Trey Sweeney contributed next to nothing at the plate.  Utilityman Zach McKinstry is a decent part-time option, but the Tigers would likely prefer to keep McKinstry bouncing around the diamond.  With two years remaining on Baez’s contract and star prospect Kevin McGonigle perhaps on the verge of his MLB debut in 2026, Detroit will probably look for stopgap options at shortstop, if anything.  The Tigers had some interest in Ha-Seong Kim before Kim returned to the Braves on a one-year deal.

Twins (Right field, -0.3 bWAR): While right field was Minnesota’s worst position, shortstop wasn’t far ahead at -0.2 bWAR, as the Twins got less from the shortstop position than any other team in baseball.  Third base was also a problem area with 0.0 bWAR, but the hope is that Royce Lewis can finally stay healthy enough to deliver something close to a full season in 2026.  After trading away large chunks of their roster at the trade deadline, the Twins have stopped short of a full rebuild, so they could be looking to add to some degree for next season even if their adds will surely be of the lower-cost variety.  Minnesota might add a veteran utility infield type for depth purposes, but the team surely wants to view Lewis, Luke Keaschall at second base, and Brooks Lee at shortstop plenty of runway to (hopefully) establish themselves as true building blocks.  For right field, top prospect Walker Jenkins figures to make his MLB debut in 2026, so the Twins might again stick with Matt Wallner and/or Trevor Larnach until Jenkins arrives.

White Sox (First base, -0.8 bWAR): After Chicago’s 121-loss team in 2024 yielded six different positions that had sub-replacement bWAR totals, the Sox improved to just two subpar positions in 2025, between first base and left field (-0.3).  While this perhaps counts as damning with faint praise, the Sox took a much more prominent step forward by signing Munetaka Murakami to a two-year, $34MM deal.  Projected by MLBTR and several other pundits for a much more lucrative contract, the Japanese slugger’s market never really developed, and Murakami opted for a shorter-term deal with Chicago that allows him quick re-entry into free agency following the 2027 season.  If Murakami is able to prove critics wrong about his low contact rate and display some of the power he brought to the Yakult Swallows’ lineup, the White Sox will suddenly have plenty of pop from their first base position.

Yankees (Catcher, 0.6 bWAR): Austin Wells delivered a 107 wRC+ over 414 PA during his rookie season, but that production dropped back to a 94 wRC+ in 448 PA in 2025.  Defensively, Wells is a fantastic pitch-framer, and about average when it comes to throwing out baserunners or blocking.  There isn’t all that much for New York to be concerned by with the former top prospect, and when it comes to the catching position as a whole, the Yankees also have J.C. Escarra as a traditional backup and Ben Rice chipping in behind the plate when he isn’t at first base or DH.  It’s possible Rice might get more time behind the plate if the Yankees were to sign Cody Bellinger, but even if Bellinger got some time at first base, he’d primarily stick to left field while New York kept Rice as the first-choice first baseman and Wells as the starting catcher.