Each National League Team’s Biggest Remaining Need

With more than half of Sports Illustrated’s top 50 MLB free agents still unsigned, there’s still plenty of talent on the market—and a whole lot of teams with glaring weaknesses. After breaking down each American League team’s biggest need on Thursday, let’s shift gears and do the same for the National League.

Phillies: Catcher

Philadelphia’s president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski recently declared that catcher is the club’s “main focus.” After retaining one fan favorite in slugger Kyle Schwarber, could the Phillies do the same at catcher with J.T. Realmuto? He’s one of the most durable backstops in the game and has been Philadelphia’s starter behind the plate since 2019. Realmuto, 35, seems to be declining offensively, but he’s the best free agent option available and the cupboard is pretty bare behind him in Philadelphia.

Mets: Starting pitcher

Lost in all the panic of the winter meetings, in which the Mets lost fan favorites Edwin Díaz and Pete Alonso to the Dodgers and Orioles, respectively, is that the Mets still need to add a veteran starting pitcher to a rotation that leaned heavily on its young pitching depth down the stretch amid New York’s collapse. It’s not in David Stearns’s nature to pony up for a high-end starter in free agency, so perhaps rotation reinforcements could arrive via the trade market. Either way, New York needs to add a starter.

Marlins: First base

Miami’s lineup could use an influx of power, and first base presents the most room to improve. Marlins first basemen ranked just 27th in WAR and OPS in 2025. While the Marlins could opt to find a solution to its first base problem internally and hope for improvement at the dish from the likes of incumbent Eric Wagaman, the club’s front office would be better served by importing a free agent, such as Ryan O’Hearn or Rhys Hoskins, or scouring the trade market for an upgrade.

Braves: Starting pitcher

On the surface, starting pitching would not appear to be a need when a club’s projected 2026 rotation is headlined by 2024 NL Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale, All-Star Spencer Strider and promising youngster Spencer Schwellenbach. The problem is, each of those three, as well as fellow starters Reynaldo Lopez and Grant Holmes, missed significant time due to injuries this year. While Atlanta could shop in the high-end stores for a starter, a mid-range or back-of-the-rotation innings eater could also do wonders.

Nationals: Starting pitcher

One could make the case that the Nationals most need to improve first base, where they posted the eighth-worst OPS among the 30 clubs in 2025. But a more pressing need is starting pitching, for Washington’s starters were among the worst in the big leagues, even with staff ace MacKenzie Gore enjoying the best year of his career. Plus, Gore appears to be on the trade block, which only heightens the need to add a proven starter.

Brewers: Power bat

The Brewers’ biggest need is a power bat in the lineup, but, in a bit of a good conundrum, the club doesn’t have an obvious vacancy in the field for such a bat. Still, if Milwaukee is serious about winning its first World Series rather than just succeeding in the regular season, the franchise could shoot higher at first base, shortstop or left field. Cody Bellinger would be a terrific fit, but it’s a pipe dream to think the Brewers would win his bidding war.

Cubs: Starting pitcher

Chicago has several good starters, such as veteran Matthew Boyd, 2024 All-Star Shota Imanaga and Cade Horton, who finished second in the NL Rookie of the Year voting. But the Cubs could use an extra hurler, particularly a high-end starter who misses bats, as Chicago’s rotation ranked just 23rd in strikeout rate and 19th in swinging strike rate, or one who induces a lot of groundouts, as Cubs starters generated the fourth-worst groundball rate in the majors in 2025.

Reds: Power bat

Cincinnati needs a powerful, middle-of-the-order presence in its lineup to take some of the pressure off of two-time All-Star Elly De La Cruz, hence the club’s interest in slugger Kyle Schwarber. The most likely positions where an upgrade could occur are at one of the corner outfield spots, first base or perhaps designated hitter.

Cardinals: Starting pitcher

St. Louis added former Dodgers starter Dustin May to its rotation, an under-the-radar move that could pay big dividends. But May has missed time in past years due to injuries and 2025 was the first time he eclipsed the 100-inning mark. Among the Cardinals’ 2026 projected starters, just three have hit that mark before. It would seem St. Louis still needs to add a veteran innings-eater to the mix, whether through free agency or the trade market.

Pirates: Third base

Pittsburgh badly needs to upgrade a lineup that ranked last in MLB in runs scored, OPS and home runs in 2025. It’s no wonder that the Pirates, reported to be surprising spenders entering this offseason, were in the mix for slugger Kyle Schwarber, who returned to Philadelphia. While Pittsburgh could make additions work in the outfield or at second base, an upgrade at third base is more realistic after the club dealt away Ke’Bryan Hayes at the July trade deadline. Alex Bregman might prove to be too rich an addition, but what about Japanese corner infielder Munetaka Murakami?

Japan third baseman Munetaka Murakami — Munetaka Murakami, a 2023 World Baseball Classic participant, is set to depart Japan for the majors this offseason. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Dodgers: Outfielder

With just one move—signing Edwin Diaz—the Dodgers addressed the club’s biggest need: its lack of a true closer. So while making a big splash for Tarik Skubal or Kyle Tucker would be nice, it would be more of an impulse buy for the Dodgers front office than addressing a pressing area. Such is life for the back-to-back defending champions. But with Tommy Edman recovering from ankle surgery, might the Dodgers add a veteran outfielder with some pop and a capable glove, such as free agent Harrison Bader?

Padres: First base

The Padres could stand to add a starter to a group that lost Dylan Cease to free agency, but pitching is not as pressing of a need after they re-signed Michael King on Thursday. Given the lineup’s power outage in its second straight early postseason exit, there’s an argument the offense needs a spark. First base is an obvious spot where San Diego can inject some pop into this lineup, given the departures of Ryan O’Hearn and Luis Arraez. O’Hearn is a potential candidate to return, while free agents Munetaka Murakami and Rhys Hoskins are potential candidates who could add some muscle to the Padres’ batting order.

Giants: Starting pitcher

San Francisco possesses two rotation cornerstones in All-Star Logan Webb and 2021 American League Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray, as well as an entrenched starter in Landen Roupp. There are, however, some question marks behind those three. The Giants could use a proven arm or two to add some stability and help fill out this rotation. Whether the front office chooses to sign one of the high-end free agents, such as Framber Valdez, or stick to the mid-range tier, like Zac Gallen, remains to be seen.

Diamondbacks: Third base

After dealing Eugenio Suarez at the trade deadline, the Diamondbacks turned third base duties over to Blaze Alexander, though it’s unclear if he, or perhaps Jordan Lawler, who has been taking reps in center field in winter ball, is a long-term fit at third base. Arizona would be wise to at least explore bringing in a veteran at the hot corner, whether it’s a surprise splash (Alex Bregman, Munetaka Murakami) or a reunion with Suarez.

Rockies: Starting pitcher

Fortunately for the Rockies, there’s nowhere to go but up after the worst season in franchise history—and one of the worst ever. That logic also applies to the club’s pitching rotation, which recorded the worst ERA of any staff in league history (6.65) while also ranking last in strikeout rate. Only two projected 2026 Rockies starters have cleared the 100-innings pitched mark in the big leagues-a telling stat for the youthful yet inexperienced group. With hitter-friendly Coors Field and seven straight losing seasons working against them, Colorado’s front office must attempt to add a veteran starter.