There is no shortage of MLB storylines in New York.
Juan Soto is a Met, bringing with him sky-high expectations. The Yankees seek to return to the World Series without him, having built a balanced roster that’s already been ambushed by injuries.
But there is plenty of intrigue beyond Queens and the Bronx, too.
The deep-pocketed Dodgers are baseball’s newest supervillains. The National League is loaded. The American League is wide open.
It all ramps up Thursday, when most teams will celebrate Opening Day.
Here are the biggest MLB storylines for 2025:
Dodgers Dominance
Renewed discourse about whether MLB needs a salary cap erupted this offseason after the Dodgers’ latest spending spree, which boosted the defending World Series champions’ competitive-balance-tax payroll to a record $401.3 million, according to Cot’s Contracts.
But now the focus shifts to what all of that money looks like on the field.
Additions including Blake Snell, Tanner Scott and Roki Sasaki bolstered a star-powered roster already headlined by Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Clayton Kershaw re-signed, too, keeping the Dodgers’ foursome of former MVPs — Ohtani, Betts and Freeman are the others — intact.
Some think this is the most talented roster in MLB history, fueling questions about whether Los Angeles will challenge for the single-season record of 116 wins set by the Mariners in 2001.
The Dodgers are already 2-0, having swept the Cubs in the season-opening Tokyo Series.
Shohei Sequel
Ohtani’s debut season with the Dodgers went about as well as possible. He became the first MLB player to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in the same year; won NL MVP; and earned his first World Series ring.
But the Dodgers still haven’t seen everything Ohtani can do.
That’s because the two-way sensation did not pitch last year as he recovered from 2023 elbow surgery.
Ohtani’s long-awaited return to an MLB mound is on track to happen in May.
The flame-throwing right-hander boasts a 3.01 ERA and 608 strikeouts in 481.2 innings.
Ks for Kershaw
The best chance at achieving a major career milestone this season belongs to Kershaw, who is only 32 strikeouts away from 3,000.
Kershaw would become the 20th pitcher to join the 3,000 strikeout club, and only the fourth left-hander.
Now in his 18th season, Kershaw is set to begin the year on the 60-day injured list after undergoing foot and knee surgeries in November.
He’s aiming for a June return, which would provide ample time to record the requisite strikeouts.
Another player approaching a significant milestone is Mike Trout, who is 22 home runs away from 400. Injuries have prevented the Angels star from reaching 22 home runs in three of the last four seasons.
Sophomore Skenes
Outside of Ohtani, perhaps no player is more electrifying than the fire-balling Paul Skenes.
After making his MLB debut in May, the Pirates phenom pitched to a 1.96 ERA and 170 strikeouts in 133 innings. He won NL Rookie of the Year and finished third in NL Cy Young Award voting.
His fastball averaged 98.8 mph.
Just imagine the numbers Skenes can put up in a full season.
Barring injury, we’ll find out this year, starting on Thursday when the 22-year-old Skenes is set to become baseball’s youngest Opening Day starter in over a decade.
Vlad Vision
In his walk year in 2022, Aaron Judge set an AL single-season record with 62 home runs, leading to a nine-year, $360 million contract with the Yankees.
Last season, Soto parlayed his 41-homer, .989 OPS production into an unprecedented 15-year, $765 million deal with the Mets.
All eyes now turn to Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who is baseball’s hottest impending free agent after he failed to reach a contract extension with the Blue Jays.
Guerrero, a Canadian citizen, told ESPN he asked Toronto this offseason for less than $600 million over 15 years.
If the 26-year-old replicates last season, when he recorded 30 home runs and 199 hits, he should have no trouble cashing in on the open market next winter.
Braves Bounceback
The Braves won six consecutive NL East titles from 2018-23 — and more than 100 games in the final two of those years — before injuries decimated them last season.
They still snuck into the playoffs as an 89-win wild card team, but they enter this season eager to re-stake their claim as the NL’s dominant club.
Right-handed ace Spencer Strider hopes to be back from elbow surgery by late April, while 2023 NL MVP Ronald Acuna Jr. aims to return from knee surgery by May.
The health of those superstars would go a long way in turning the NL East into a three-team race with the Mets and Phillies.
Open AL
While the aforementioned Braves, Mets and Phillies populate a very deep NL that also includes the Dodgers, Padres and new-look Cubs, the AL appears to be more there for the taking.
The Orioles lost Corbin Burnes and Anthony Santander in the offseason, while the Astros effectively replaced Kyle Tucker and Alex Bregman with Isaac Paredes and Christian Walker.
The retooled Red Sox are a team to watch, as are the Rangers, who won the World Series in 2023 before missing the playoffs last year.
The Yankees remain the favorites, but Gerrit Cole’s season-ending elbow surgery and Giancarlo Stanton’s uncertain timeline to return from tennis elbow in both arms have complicated their case.
Sox Saga
The Red Sox finally flexed their financial muscles this offseason when they gave Bregman a three-year, $120 million contract with heavily deferred money.
The signing was lauded as a win-now move, but it quickly led to controversy when incumbent third baseman Rafael Devers publicly refused to leave the hot corner.
Manager Alex Cora says he plans to use Bregman, the AL’s reigning Gold Glove winner, at third base. With prized prospect Kristian Campbell poised to make the Opening Day roster as the primary second baseman, Devers appears destined for regular DH duty.
It will be worth monitoring how this situation unfolds once the games begin.
As long as it is not a distraction, the Red Sox — who also traded for burgeoning ace Garrett Crochet — could challenge the Yankees for AL East supremacy.
deGrom Redemption
The Rangers have not gotten much out of deGrom since they signed him away from the Mets before the 2023 season for $185 million over five years.
The two-time Cy Young Award winner, 36, made only six starts in 2023 before undergoing Tommy John surgery. He returned at the end of last season and made three starts.
The right-hander has been effective when he has pitched for Texas, posting a 2.41 ERA, but that’s over only 41 innings.
The Rangers hope deGrom can stay healthy — and return to his elite form — in the third year of his mega-deal.
