Every MLB team is looking to come out on top in every offseason deal they make, whether it is getting the better end of a trade or signing a free agent at a bargain price.
Now obviously, that does not always wind up being the case, as there is generally a loser in every trade. And for every bargain free-agent signing, there are probably two or three guys who are vastly overpaid.
Nonetheless, the offseason is about maximizing assets, both in the form of payroll room and player talent, and there will undoubtedly be some moves from the 2014 offseason that wind up looking like absolute steals in hindsight.
However, we don’t have the benefit of hindsight at this point, so calling a deal a steal has to be based on market value.
In the case of free-agent signings, it’s a matter of what a team spent on a player in relation to his projected production and the rest of the market at his position. Minor league free-agent signings and low-cost, one-year deals often have the best chance of being steals.
With trade acquisitions, it’s obviously a case of how much talent was given up versus how much talent was acquired, and how the deal bettered the overall outlook of the roster.
So with all of that in mind, what follows is a look at every MLB team’s biggest steal of the 2015 offseason.