The 2018 winter meetings concluded on Thursday, officially ending with the annual Rule 5 draft. This year's edition of the meetings lacked the juice of past editions. Nonetheless, we wanted to reflect once more before moving on to bigger (and hopefully more exciting) things. As such, we've opted to grade teams based solely on what they did or didn't do in Las Vegas.
Some teams didn't do anything this week -- at least not that resulted in a transaction or noteworthy rumor. For those clubs, we've given them a grade of "N/A."
The Diamondbacks made a big move before heading to Vegas by shipping Paul Goldschmidt to the Cardinals in exchange for a three-player package. They didn't do much this week, however. The juiciest rumor involving Arizona had Mike Hazen and company interested in Red Sox outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. Ho hum.
The Braves also didn't do much despite continuing their hunt for an outfielder. Alex Anthopoulos left Vegas early to meet with ownership. There's no telling if that's connected to anything the Braves are rumored to be involved with, including a J.T. Realmuto pursuit.
Hey, here we go. The Orioles had a somewhat productive week. They reportedly landed their new manager, Cubs bench coach Brandon Hyde, and took advantage of their poor record to add some fringe talent to the mix, including shortstop Richie Martin, the No. 1 pick in the Rule 5 draft. Nothing they did was sexy, but we're giving them an A for showing life.
The Red Sox hashed out a deal with Nathan Eovaldi before the meetings, leaving them without much to announce in Vegas. Rumors did circulate that they're out on Craig Kimbrel and are willing to listen to offers for some of their veterans. We'll see.
Things have been mostly quiet from the Cubs lately. They're either secretly in the Bryce Harper race, or they're really not going to swim in the deep waters this year.
The White Sox made a nifty trade, acquiring Ivan Nova to plug into the middle of their rotation. You can pardon White Sox fans if they're more interested in the team's rumored pursuit of Bryce Harper.
The Reds added Tanner Roark to help improve their rotation at the cost of a walk-prone relief prospect. That'll work. Dick Williams and company need to keep adding as they make a push toward relevancy.
Cleveland had a busy Thursday, partaking in a three-team deal that swapped out Edwin Encarnacion, Yandy Diaz, and a minor-league reliever for Carlos Santana and Jake Bauers. We're not a fan of the AL Central favorite looking to strip payroll -- as rumors suggest -- but we're giving them high marks here for adding Bauers, who has the chance to be a solid big-league first baseman for years to come at the cost of an older player who didn't seem to have a home on the roster.
The Rockies are going to add some offensive firepower between now and spring training. They just haven't done it yet.
The Tigers signed free agents Tyson Ross and Jordy Mercer to small deals with the hopes of gaining some league-average production and perhaps marketable trade chits. Neither has great upside, but it's hard to knock either deal given the cost.
The Astros didn't do anything this week other than wish former starter Charlie Morton good luck with his new team. They're likely to be more active heading forward.
The Royals inked Billy Hamilton and picked up two interesting arms in the Rule 5 draft: Sam McWilliams and Chris Ellis. Kansas City is hoping to hit on a new Brad Keller-like find. That's what they should be doing. We dock them a grade on the Hamilton signing because it means he won't yet become the league's most dangerous pinch-run option. (Before you get mad, Royals fans, remember this exercise means nothing.)
The Angels leave Vegas with a new above-average hitter in tow following their agreement with free-agent Justin Bour. It's not entirely clear how the Angels intend to deploy him, but this is a team that should be gobbling up as much talent as possible to maximize Mike Trout's prime.
The Dodgers were rumored to be involved in all kinds of trade talks. In the end, all they did was sign Joe Kelly to be a setup man. We're all right with it -- it's nice to see the Dodgers sign a free agent after last winter -- but we do worry that Kelly is being overrated.
The Marlins continued to shop around J.T. Realmuto. It doesn't seem like they did much else.
The Brewers made a small trade before bolting back to the midwest, picking up changeup artist Alex Claudio from the Rangers. He'll help their bullpen.
The Twins are connected to a number of free agents, including Nelson Cruz. It seems like just a matter of time before Minnesota adds to their roster.
Does any team bring back former players as often as this club? The Mets reunited with Jeurys Familia, whom they had traded to the Athletics at the deadline, and reportedly continued to talk about trades involving J.T. Realmuto and Noah Syndergaard.
The Yankees reportedly reached an agreement with J.A. Happ. He'll provide a mid-rotation boost behind Luis Severino and James Paxton. Brian Cashman also set off a slew of "Star Wars" tweets. We're docking them for that.
The A's were, at one point, rumored to be close to landing Jurickson Profar from the Rangers. But no deal has been reported yet.
The Phillies kicked off the Meetings by signing Andrew McCutchen to a three-year pact. He should help their lineup and clubhouse alike. They're still waiting to land the biggest piece of their winter: presumably either Manny Machado or Bryce Harper.
We like the Pirates' small gamble on Jordan Lyles, who reworked his mechanics and pitch mix to good effect last season. We don't like the Pirates dumping salary without markedly improving the roster in the process.
A few years back, A.J. Preller owned the winter. He didn't do anything this week, but the Padres are seemingly sniffing around big moves. They certainly have the prospect power to get stuff done if they so desire.
The Giants made some small, on-the-margins moves, claiming outfielder Mike Gerber off waivers and adding two Rule 5 picks who have a chance to stick: lefty Travis Bergen and outfielder Drew Ferguson. Fair enough.
Hospital stay or not, you knew Jerry Dipoto was going to swing a trade. He saved the Mariners more money by swapping Carlos Santana for Edwin Encarnacion. We would like it more if it wasn't seemingly a move to appease ownership. At least the M's gained a draft pick?
The Cardinals made a few small moves, claiming pitcher Ryan Meisinger off waivers from the Orioles and adding outfielder Drew Robinson in a trade with the Rangers. Neither is likely or intended to move the needle.
We dig the Rays' signing of Charlie Morton. We're not as sweet on trading Jake Bauers and $5 million for Yandy Diaz and a minor-league arm, but it could work out okay given the Rays organizational depth at first base.
It seems absurd to give Lance Lynn three years given the Rangers are unlikely to compete this year. But the contract amount would've been justifiable over two years and it's nice to see a non-contender spend some coin to upgrade their short-term chances.
The Blue Jays landed teenager Elvis Luciano in the Rule 5 draft. That's about the highlight of their week, unless you include Marcus Stroman rumors.
On paper, the Nationals probably lost the Tanner swap -- Roark for Rainey. Rainey does have a chance to add another high-octane arm to the Nationals bullpen, but it's clear they have a few more moves to make before the roster is finalized.