McCarthy had a breakout season in 2022, making adjustments at the plate and showing off his elite speed. He never found those adjustments this year, with an OPS that declined by more than 100 points and multiple demotions to the minors. McCarthy appeared to be a future regular heading into last season, but now his future isn’t as clear.

Wright led the league with 21 wins last season, but the issues all but robbed him of his 2023 season. The right-hander posted an ERA near 7.00 and finished the year in relief.

The Orioles were mostly quiet at the trade deadline with the exception of acquiring Flaherty. The former Cardinal has struggled to get back to his early-career ace form due to arm problems, and only got worse after donning an O’s hat. He posted an ERA above 6.00 and was demoted to the bullpen late in the year.

The upside seemed limitless for Whitlock after his first two seasons in Boston, and he was plagued by injuries throughout the 2023 season. The good news is that his control of the strike zone remained outstanding, but the Red Sox don’t have any evidence they can rely on Whitlock with his injuries and ERA above 5.00 this season.

Taillon was Chicago’s most expensive signing of the offseason, earning a four-year, $68 million contract after a great season with the Yankees. He broke out of the gate slowly and was the team’s worst starting pitcher for a large portion of the year. The good news is that Taillon pitched much better down the stretch with a sub-4.00 ERA in the second half.

Anderson was arguably the most disappointing player in baseball during 2023, continuing the decline that started in 2022 with a sub-.600 OPS and unbelievably only one home run for the season. He never came close to hitting .300, ending his streak at three consecutive seasons, and seems at a crossroads in his MLB career at age 30.

One of the few free agents Cincinnati splurged on during the offseason, Myers was a huge bust. He played only 37 games before getting designated for assignment, hitting just .189-3-12. His baseball future is unclear after failing to catch on elsewhere.

A solid regular both offensively and defensive for the Guardians over the previous two seasons, Rosario struggled in Cleveland before getting traded to the Dodgers at the deadline. His .675 OPS was only 40 points lower than last season, but it was Rosario’s defensive decline that was even more concerning. Rosario’s market will be interesting to watch as he enters free agency.

Bryant has now been plagued by injuries in the first two seasons of a seven-year, $182 million contract with Colorado. Unlike his first year in Colorado, Bryant also failed to hit this season with a sub-.700 OPS.

For the optimists who said Baez couldn’t get any worse after his first season in Detroit, he proved them wrong. His OPS dropped nearly 100 points, and he failed to hit 10 home runs over a full season. Plus defense was the only saving grace for the former star shortstop, who has four years remaining on his contract.

Abreu signed a massive three-year deal worth nearly $60 million during the offseason, but the move from the White Sox to Houston wasn’t kind to the veteran. The former MVP’s OPS was nearly 200 points lower than the .860 career OPS he had coming into the year, though Houston’s loyalty to Abreu in the middle of the batting order did allow him to near 90 RBI.

The Royals signed Lyles to a two-year, $17 million contract to help stabilize their starting rotation, but it’s hard to fathom how he could have performed worse. The right-hander finished the season 6-17 with a 6.28 ERA in 31 starts. The only solace KC got from the signing was that Lyles filled over 170 innings for the third consecutive year.

The Angels have made some terrible free agency signings over the last two decades, but Rendon could stand out atop them all after another terrible year. His season started with a confrontation with a fan, and he finished the year playing only 43 games due to injury and hitting .236-2-22. Through the first four seasons of Rendon’s seven-year, $245 million contract, he’s had only 857 plate appearances with 22 home runs.

Syndergaard seemed like an excellent fit for the analytics-minded Dodgers organization, but his unfortunate decline following major arm injuries continued. The right-hander posted a 7.16 ERA in 12 starts before getting traded to Cleveland, and still never found his footing with the Guardians.

The Marlins struck out on another free-agent signing, with Segura face-planting after signing a two-year, $17 million contract. He hit only .219-3-21 in 326 plate appearances and was dumped at the trade deadline in the Josh Bell deal.

There were high hopes for Tellez to lead the Brewers offense after hitting 35 home runs in 2022. His stroke never got going this season, hitting only 13 home runs through his first 103 games. Tellez missed time to injury, and struggled to find playing time upon his return after the team acquired Carlos Santana and Mark Canha.

Buxton’s season was quite bizarre from the beginning, as the Twins refused to use their prized outfielder in the field due to health concerns. It was apparent Buxton was playing hurt with his performance at the plate, hitting only .207-17-42 with a .731 OPS in 85 games before he was shut down with a knee injury.

Marte fought a groin issue this season that he just couldn’t seem to shake, finishing the year hitting only .248-5-28 with 24 steals in 86 games. One of many disappointing Mets, Marte hopes to bounce back at age 35 in the third year of his four-year contract next year.

The Yankees might already have buyer’s remorse after giving Rodon a massive six-year contract in the offseason. His Yankees debut was delayed by elbow and back injuries, and the lefty was terrible when he did pitch, with a 6.85 ERA in 14 starts. His season ended in horrible fashion, allowing eight earned runs to the Royals without recording an out in his final start.

Oakland handed out a few seemingly random multi-year contracts in the offseason, including to Diaz. He struggled in the first season of his two-year deal, posting an OPS near .600 and missing significant time to injury.

Nola had all the motivation in the world to perform well in his walk year, but he posted an ERA well above 4.00 for the second time in three seasons. The right-hander was plagued by home-run issues, though he did accumulate more than 200 strikeouts for the fifth time in his career.

Contreras appeared to be a future ace after his debut last season, but lost significant velocity this year. The result was a 6.59 ERA in 19 appearances for the young right-hander, and he was demoted to Triple-A in July. The Pirates might have to go back to the drawing board to figure out what went wrong.

The addition of Xander Bogaerts necessitated a full-time move to first base for Cronenworth. With it came the hope of an offensive rebound after his OPS declined to .722 last season, but Cronenworth’s decline continued this year. He hit only .229-10-48 in 522 plate appearances as one of the worst offensive first basemen in baseball.

Haniger was known for his power and defense before signing a two-year, $28 million contract with the Giants in the offseason. Unfortunately, Haniger was also known for injuries, which continued into 2023 and kept him out for more than half of the season. He finished the season hitting only .209-6-28 in 61 games, and also struggled in the field.

Seattle acquired Wong from Milwaukee in a contract swap last December, with the expectation he would be their starting second baseman. The veteran played himself out of the starting role with his struggles at the plate, hitting only .165 with a .468 OPS in 67 games before he was released in August.

Wainwright opted to return for his swan song after an excellent 2022 season. His season started off on a sour note with lower-body injuries, and he was never able to regain his form. In fact, Wainwright was arguably the worst pitcher in baseball when he did take the mound this year with a 7.40 ERA over 21 starts. It was a tough way to see the Cardinals legend go out, but he did reach 200 career wins in September.

Franco was considered the future of not only the Rays but also MLB as the former top prospect in baseball. He got off to an excellent start this season and made his first All-Star appearance, but it all came crashing down when criminal complaints were filed against him in the Dominican Republic in August. Franco is now on administrative leave, and his baseball future is in serious doubt at age 22.

DeGrom last made more than 15 starts in 2019, but that didn’t stop the Rangers from giving him a five-year, $185 million contract during the offseason. After six dominant starts, deGrom underwent Tommy John surgery and could miss the bulk of the 2024 season. It’s not how the Rangers hoped the start of his lucrative contract would go.

Manoah finished third in the AL Cy Young race last year, but looked like a completely different pitcher this season. He was demoted multiple times and finished the season with a 5.87 ERA over 19 starts, and Manoah’s relationship with the team has been potentially damaged after he refused to report to the minors late in the year.

Corbin’s struggles this season weren’t unexpected after his recent performance but were still disappointing. The left-hander led the NL in losses for the third straight season, finishing with a 5.20 ERA over 32 starts. Corbin’s durability during the life of his six-year contract has been admirable, but he’s been one of the worst pitchers in the game over the last three years.