Here's what has happened in the AL East so far this offseason.

The Boston Red Sox traded for right-hander Sonny Gray.

The Toronto Blue Jays signed free-agent starter Dylan Cease.

The Baltimore Orioles traded for slugger Taylor Ward, and signed free-agent closer Ryan Helsley.

The New York Yankees complained about payroll for 2026 because it's more expensive to run a Major League Baseball team than most people realize, owner Hal Steinbrenner said earlier this week.

Steinbrenner said club payroll was $319 million in 2025, when the Yankees finished in second place in the AL East, losing a tiebreaker with the Blue Jays, and later falling to Toronto in the ALDS . When you spend all that money and don't win the World Series, which the Yankees haven't since 2009, it apparently leaves a bad

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