Last week, Major League Baseball's 30 team owners voted unanimously . The offseason has, as a result, come to a pause. Teams are not permitted to sign free agents, or to trade players who are part of the union during the work stoppage. (Minor-league players can still be traded.) It could be some time, then, until the fates of Carlos Correa, Freddie Freeman, and the other top remaining free agents are revealed -- to say nothing of the players, like Matt Olson and Sonny Gray, who could be traded before spring training. While we wait for the return of the hot stove, we figured we'd mark the occasion by grading each team's offseason to date. You can find the full grades below, but please note that this report card (or is it more of a progre s report?) is broken down division by division, and that this is mostly for entertainment purposes. (Hey, we could all use a distraction these days, right?) Let's
Jake Cronenworth Jersey get to it. CBS Sports HQ Newsletter Your Ultimate Guide to Every Day in Sports We bring sports news that matters to your inbox, to help you stay informed and get a winning edge. I agree to receive the "CBS Sports HQ Newsletter" and marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers), and other information from CBS Sports and the Paramount family of companies. By pre sing sign up, I confirm that I have read and agree to the . Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe. Thanks for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox. Sorry! There was an error proce sing your subscription. The Orioles under Mike Elias' guidance have approached their big-league roster with utter nihilism. Their priorities have been to ama s high draft picks and avoid unnece sary expenditures, such as signing mid- to low-tier free agents to a roster that has won 34 percent of its games since 2019 began. Neverthele s, Elias did agree to terms with two free agents ahead of the lockout: infielder Rougned Odor and starter Jordan Lyles, whose $6 million salary will make him one of the the highest-paid Orioles.Lyles, a career 5.21 ERA aside, is the more interesting of the two. He's coming off a rough two-year
Cal Quantrill Jersey stint with the Rangers, but he's shown flashes before and seems like an obvious candidate to take a step forward if he can tweak his pitch mix. Baltimore's projected Opening Day payroll remains around $40 million, so there's no justification for the Orioles sitting out free agency when the lockout ends. GRADE: D You can take the executive out of Tampa Bay, but you can't take the Tampa Bay out of the executive. Chaim Bloom's third offseason as the Red Sox's point guard has been Raysian -- to the extent that he's even signed two former Rays pitchers. Bloom's haul to date includes veteran starters Rich Hill, James Paxton, and Michael Wacha, as well as outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. and infield prospects David Hamilton and Alex Binelas. (Those last three were acquired from the Brewers for Hunter Renfroe).You can make the case there's a risk-reward imbalance present in Boston's offseason. Hill's age, Paxton's health, and Wacha's track record make them all attrition candidates. Furthermore, Bradley Jr. is coming off an atrocious season that saw him post a 34 OPS+ over 428 trips to the plate. If those four players perform
Randy Jones Jersey closer to their median expectations in 2022, the Red Sox will have gained three mid-to-back-end starters and a glove-first outfielder who can start most days in center. That's a solid haul. The problem is that it's easy to see two or three of them falling well short of their median expectations once again, leaving Boston in a tough spot. The Red Sox, a financial behemoth, are coming off a surprising postseason appearance and have a projected payroll well beneath the $200-million mark. It would be nice to see them behave like it by shopping closer to the top of the market. GRADE: C The Yankees might still make a splash, be it by signing Carlos Correa and/or trading for Matt Olson. As of the lockout, though, Brian Cashman has done almost nothing of note
Carlos Asuaje Jersey . That's disappointing given the Yankees' desire to upgrade at both the shortstop and catcher position, as well as their need in the rotation. Perhaps it's unfair to judge a team so harshly when half an offseason remains, but the amount of pre-lockout activity means there aren't going to be as many top-end options available once the offseason returns.GRADE: F Comparatively, the Rays have behaved more like the Yankees than the Yankees have. Erik Neander reached agreements with Corey Kluber and Brooks Raley, giving Tampa Bay a highly decorated mid-rotation starter and a sneaky-good left-handed reliever who should end up pitching in high-leverage situations. We'd be remi s if we didn't note that the Rays also reached an agreement on a long-term extension with wunderkind Wander Franco. That alone would've earned the Rays an "A" grade, as its past time for the franchise to give its fans the ability to form a meaningful emotional attachment to the team's best players.The Rays also cleared the brush from their 40-player roster by trading away Joey Wendle, Jordan Luplow, and others. Expect Tampa Bay to pursue trades for Tyler Glasnow and Kevin Kiermaier once the lockout lifts. GRADE: A The Blue Jays have also been busy this winter. Ro s Atkins has already succe sfully extended Jos Berros and signed Kevin Gausman, thereby shaping Toronto's rotation for next season (and, really, for the next half-decade to come).Don't be surprised if veteran right-hander Yimi Garca ends up being a better-than-expected addition in the bullpen, either. GRADE: A Rick Hahn's offseason work so far has seen him sign reliever Kendall Graveman and utility player Leury Garca to three-year contracts. He also exercised the White Sox's club option on Craig Kimbrel, seemingly setting the stage for an offseason trade. It's likely that neither Graveman nor Garca perform up to their 2021 standards, which means these moves might not have the impact that the White Sox hope. That isn't to suggest either is a bad addition (both made our free-agent top 50 list for a reason), but that should explain why we're giving the White Sox a "worse" grade than you might expect based on their contributions last season. GRADE: C Well, at least the Guardians haven't traded away Jos Ramrez or Shane Bieber. They've made no additions of note, however, and they have the lowest projected payroll in the majors as ownership
Franchy Cordero Jersey continues to handcuff one of the game's savviest front offices.GRADE: F The Tigers were expected to be active this offseason. Al Avila has delivered by signing Eduardo Rodriguez and Javier Bez, as well as acquiring Tucker Barnhart from the Reds in a salary dump trade. Rodriguez gives an otherwise young Tigers