The free agency period is beginning to die down. Pitchers and catchers are reporting soon, so the time is coming. There are big prominent names still out there, such as Pete Alonso and Alex Bregman. While the baseball world waits for them to sign, let’s take a look at the five teams that improved the most this winter.

Chicago Cubs

Adding Matthew Boyd is nice depth for the rotation, as well as Colin Rea. But really the big prize was making the big splash for outfielder Kyle Tucker.

Tucker not only gives them stellar out fielding, but he is the bat they are desperately missing. The Cubs as an offense ranked 17th in average and 13th in OPS. They were 12th in runs and 21st in home runs. Given their rotation has depth and can deliver, they need offense.

Tucker had an injury riddled season, but put together a stellar campaign. Yes you want bounce back years from Nico Hoerner and Dansby Swanson, but adding Tucker takes pressure off those guys.

Arizona Diamondbacks

The NL West is going to be a gauntlet and for good reason. The defending champions exist. The Padres still have a boatload of impactful talent up and down the lineup. The Giants made additions. But the Diamondbacks are one of the most improved teams and for many reasons.

The team said goodbye to first baseman Christian Walker, whom was great defensively and also had a lot of power in his bat. Standing pat was not an option, so they went out and traded for Bo Naylor from the Cleveland Guardians. Naylor might not be as stellar defensively, but he adds offense to the lineup.

Their biggest prize was signing Corbin Burnes. The rotation in terms of ERA was near the bottom of the league. Adding a steady ace like Burnes gives them weapons in the rotation. The Snakes are out to play and they will challenge for the division crown.

Boston Red Sox

Yep. I’m going to add the Boston Red Sox to this mix. They may not have made the big splash spending spree that the fans want them to. But what they did do was make moves to address needs and bolster their team.

The bullpen got a nice shakeup with depth signings, but the biggest one was signing Aroldis Chapman. Chapman is the perfect pitcher for them, giving them a strikeout machine and a pitcher that can generate the swing and miss. The biggest adds came for the rotation.

The Red Sox rotation saw plenty of growth. Tanner Houck took the next steps and became an All-Star and an ace. Kutter Crawford showed promise despite a poor second half. But the writing was on the wall that the Red Sox needed another front line starter. The team acquired Garrett Crochet from the White Sox and he now becomes their ace. They also signed veteran pitcher Walker Buehler to a one year deal and now there is stability and promise there.

The Red Sox prospects are coming, but this is improvement and in areas they needed it.

New York Yankees

Yes. The Big, Bad, Yankees are on this list. Would they have much rather signed Juan Soto to a deal and kept him in the Bronx for the rest of his career? Absolutely. But they pivoted and their pivot plan was a very good one.

They may not have landed THE guy, but instead they got a BUNCH of guys and have a more well rounded roster. The Yankees landed the next big pitcher in Max Fried. Fried has been one of the best pitchers inside this decade, having the third best ERA (2.81). He is a pitcher that can take the ball and gives the Yankees a dynamic 1-2 punch.

They brought in Cody Bellinger, whose athleticism and versatility will be a valuable tool for Aaron Boone. Paul Goldschmidt will play first base and gives the team the best option to doing so. The best move? Acquiring Devin Williams.

Outside of Emmanuel Clase, Williams has been the best reliever inside this decade. He now becomes the closer and gives the Yankees and very fun back of the bullpen.

It was not Soto, but this team improved all over the diamond which is the next best thing.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Let’s keep this sweet and to the point. The defending champions somehow improved and got better. As if they really needed to do that. Like the Yankees, they got better all over the diamond and with better talent.

They improved their lineup by adding Hye-Seong Kim from the KBO, who can play either second base or short stop. Inevitably Teoscar Hernandez returned to the Dodgers and is coming off a phenomenal season.

They bolstered their rotation with adding Blake Snell, who is a strikeout machine and finished in the 98th percentile for whiff rate. Also, joining the fold was Roki Sasaki. Their rotation has five true number one starters. The cherry on top of the birthday cake was adding Tanner Scott who can close games and pitch in many high leverage situations.

Their bullpen is great, lineup is greater, and rotation could be the greatest.