Every offseason consists of winners and losers, and this years list winners has a few repeats on it.  Teams like the Red Sox, and Cubs are back on the list this year.  Things worked out very well for the Cubs last seasons, while the Red Sox had a rough go of things after making their splash in free agency.

The offseason winners aren’t always winners when it comes to the regular season as was the case with the Padres last year who made some very big moves and had a horrific season.  

However generally it is a good step towards making the playoffs.  Surprisingly though there is still a ton of room for this list to change as there are still plenty off really good free agents left.  Below is my top five list of the most improved teams.  

5. Atlanta Braves

The Braves come in at number five on my list, and their most important moves were all made in one trade with the Diamondbacks.  While they are offseason winners this year, I do not expect them to make the playoffs as the piers they gained are geared more towards a future push in two or three seasons.  

The Braves gained a ton of talent when they traded Shelby Miller , by getting Ender Inciarte, top prospect Dansby Swanson, as well as other top tier prospect Aaron Blair, and Gabe Speier.  The braves also added a could other pieces to the major league roster in Tyler Flowers, Jim Johnson, and Emilio Bonifacio.  The Braves won't be competing next season, but they are on the right path towards being a contender in the near future.

4. New York Yankees

Coming in at number four are the Yankees who I believe made some very good moves without having to open up the checkbooks and over spend on players.  The Yankees were able to acquire Aroldis Chapman for some mid level prospects giving them the most formidable bullpen in baseball.  The Yankees now have the top three strikeout leaders from the bullpen in 2015 on their team.  The Yankees were also able to fill their hole at second base by trading for Starlin Castro, and only giving up Adam Warren, and Brendan Ryan. These are some big moves made by the Yankees to improve their roster while not spending too much money as they look to get under the luxury tax threshold.

3. Arizona Diamondbacks 

These next three teams could all easily be number one as they made some great moves to improve their roster.  The D-Backs made some big moves to improve their starting rotation when they traded for Shelby Miller, and signed Zack Greinke.  The D-Backs already have a talented batting lineup as they ranked eighth in runs and seventh in batting average but they had subpar pitching ranking only 25th in quality starts, 16th in ERA, and 21st in WHIP.  With the D-Backs good batting lineup, and vastly improved starting rotation the D-backs are poised to make a playoff push this upcoming season.

2. Boston Red Sox

As the Sox already found out last season it’s not always the team with the top offseason who wins but this year I think they did a far better job at acquiring talent that will really improve their roster rather than just going after the big names. The best thing the Red Sox did was to improve both their bullpen rotation and their bullpen.  The Red Sox finally found a closer and they got one of the best in the game in Craig Kimbrel.  Pitching was a huge problem for the Red Sox last year which is why they trade for Kimbrel and signed perhaps the top free gent starting pitcher in David Price.  In perhaps the most underrated move the Red Sox made this year was to acquire Chris Young who absolutely crushes left handed pitching.  The Red Sox do have a crowded outfield but Young will be a great addition coming off the bench.

1. Chicago Cubs

For the second year in a row the Chicago Cubs have made it to the top of the list as the most improved team from the offseason.  The Cubs made some flashy moves beginning with the signing off Jason Heyward which is going to improve what was not a very good outfield for the Cubs last season.  

The Cubs were also abel to sign super utility man Ben Zobrist who will probably play a lot of second base after the trade of Castro and will give some outfielders rest when they need it.  The Cubs also went and improved the most important position which is the pitching.  

For the bullpen the Cubs signed Rex Brothers who is going to be a great addition as well as Jean Machi, and Adam Warren who were both solid out of the bullpen last year.  Then to add another piece to what was already a pretty good starting rotation the Cubs signed John Lackey.  What’s underrated about the Lackey and Heyward singings is that it took away two key pieces from the division rival the Cardinals which yeps give the Cubs the nod as having the best offseason this winter.