As the baseball world comes down from the high of what was an all-time great World Series, the MLB calendar waits for no one. Free agency is officially underway, and that means it’s time for our annual ranking of the top 50 available players.
This year’s class is headlined by a pair of hitters who haven’t yet turned 30 and seem poised for big paydays. There are also several players who appeared on this list a year ago but, for one reason or another, had to settle for short-term deals, and are now back on the open market seeking more financial security.
This is our sixth year doing this exercise, and while the general parameters remain the same—players are evaluated by their recent production, short- and long-term projections, ages, injury history and other related factors—each year’s crop of free agents presents its own unique challenges. This year is no different. We’ll do our best to predict the most suitable homes for these players, and keep our Big Board up to date as the offseason progresses.
Notes: Players’ listed ages reflect how old they will be during the 2026 season. This page will be updated throughout the offseason.
1. Kyle Tucker, RF
Age: 29 | Former team: Cubs | Prediction: Giants
Tucker will be aiming for a $500 million contract after he made his fourth consecutive All-Star team this year. His potential is tantalizing; in 2023, Tucker was one home run short of joining Jeff Bagwell and Carlos Beltrán as the only Astros to record a 30–30 season. However, he’s missed more than 100 games due to injuries over the last two seasons and has yet to hit more than 30 homers. Chicago traded a strong package to the Astros to acquire Tucker for what Cubs fans hoped would be more than one season, but history says once a player of his caliber reaches the open market, he ends up changing addresses.
MORE: Best Potential Free Agency Fits for Kyle Tucker
2. Bo Bichette, SS
Age: 28 | Former team: Blue Jays | Prediction: Tigers
Bichette re-established his value after a disastrous 2024 season in which injuries cost him 81 games and most of his productivity. Before this year’s playoffs, he had never played any position other than shortstop at the major league level, but perhaps it’s time for a permanent move to second base after years of ranking near the bottom in most defensive metrics at shortstop. Bichette’s contact-heavy approach should enable him to age gracefully, and the fact that he’s hitting the open market on the right side of 30 should ensure a big payday.
MORE: Best Potential Free Agency Fits for Bo Bichette
3. Cody Bellinger, OF/1B
Age: 30 | Former team: Yankees | Prediction: Phillies
After being traded to New York in what was essentially a salary dump for the Cubs, Bellinger swatted 29 home runs—his most since hitting 47 in his MVP campaign in 2019—to go along with a career-best 13.7% strikeout rate. Add in plus outfield defense in the corners and capable coverage in center field, and the decision to opt out of his contract was an easy one. Bellinger is clearly one of the premier bats available this winter—not too bad for a guy who was non-tendered by the Dodgers just three years ago.
4. Alex Bregman, 3B
Age: 32 | Former team: Red Sox | Prediction: Red Sox
Bregman opted out of his contract just one year into his three-year, $120 million deal in Boston. A quad injury cost him about a month-and-a-half in the middle of the year, but he was otherwise productive at the plate after a relatively down 2024 campaign. Bregman’s approach is sound, with minimal swing-and-miss and a good command of the strike zone, and his defense remains at least solid at the hot corner, so it seems likely he’ll get four- or five-year offers from teams this time around.
MORE: Best Potential Free Agency Fits for Alex Bregman
5. Framber Valdez, SP
Age: 32 | Former team: Astros | Prediction: Diamondbacks
Valdez is one of the majors’ most durable, consistent pitchers; he and Giants ace Logan Webb are the only two hurlers to complete at least 175 innings while recording an ERA under 3.70 in each of the last four seasons. The worm-burning lefty also has three top-10 Cy Young finishes, a no-hitter and a World Series-clinching win under his belt from his time with the Astros. Valdez would step in as a top-tier No. 2 pitcher on just about any pitching staff, and the fact he doesn’t rely on elite velocity likely means he’d age well over the course of a five-year contract.
6. Ranger Suárez, SP
Age: 30 | Former team: Phillies | Prediction: Padres
The gap between Valdez and Suárez is razor thin, and you could make a strong argument for their places on this list being swapped. The Phillies stalwart is a similarly crafty lefty who has been the picture of consistency over the last four years, always posting a FIP between 3.21 and 3.90. A master of inducing soft contact, Suárez goes against the grain of the modern model starter who relies on plus stuff and seems to thrive on giving hitters a different look than they’re used to. He should solidify some contender’s projected playoff rotation.
7. Kyle Schwarber, DH
Age: 33 | Former team: Phillies | Prediction: Mets
Over the past four seasons, only Aaron Judge has hit more than Schwarber’s 187 home runs. The veteran slugger has posted nearly every day during that span, missing just 21 games since 2022. Schwarber is comfortably in the DH-only phase of his career, and players at the bottom of the defensive spectrum have had to take some financial hits in free agency in recent years. If those teams believe Schwarber can maintain his status as one of the league’s best hitters for the medium-term future, then he’ll more than justify a nine-figure commitment.
MORE: Best Potential Free Agency Fits for Kyle Schwarber
8. Pete Alonso, 1B
Age: 31 | Former team: Mets | Prediction: Red Sox
Alonso’s first foray into free agency was a humbling experience. The slugger likely entered the market last year expecting a nine-figure contract and instead ended up returning to the Mets on a two-year, $54 million deal with an opt-out clause that he more than earned the right to exercise. The Polar Bear led the NL with 41 doubles and posted a career-high .272 batting average and .871 OPS, his best mark since bursting onto the scene as a rookie with 53 home runs in the 2019 juiced-ball season. By showing a better all-around offensive game, he’s earned a bigger contract befitting of his stature.
MORE: Best Potential Free Agency Fits for Pete Alonso
9. Josh Naylor, 1B
Age: 29 | Former team: Mariners | Prediction: Mariners
Naylor sacrificed some bat speed for a more contact-centric approach in 2025, and the result was a career-best year based on wRC+ (128) despite seeing his year-over-year home run total drop from 31 to 20. The new strategy brought with it fewer strikeouts, a huge spike in BABIP (partially justified based on his improved squared-up rate) and kept his hard-hit rate in line with his career averages. And just for fun, Naylor—whose average sprint speed (24.4 feet per second) ranks in the third percentile of all hitters—became a stolen base merchant, swiping 30 bags in 32 attempts.
10. Dylan Cease, SP
Age: 30 | Former team: Padres | Prediction: Astros
Cease is the enigma of this year’s class of pitchers. He turns 30 in December, has made at least 32 starts each year since 2021 and owns a career 28.6% strikeout rate. But far too often, his primarily two-pitch approach has gotten him into trouble, derailing otherwise stress-free outings with a blowup inning to spoil the day. Fittingly, the year-to-year results can vary drastically. Here are his ERA totals each season since ‘22: 2.20, 4.58, 3.47, 4.55. There will be no shortage of teams who believe, with the right tweak here or there, Cease can realize his ace potential on a more consistent basis.
11. Edwin Díaz, RP
Age: 32 | Former team: Mets | Prediction: Dodgers
Perhaps lost amidst the Mets’ stunning failure of a 2025 campaign, Díaz reclaimed his place as one of baseball’s most dominant closers this year. He ranked in the 99th percentile in whiff rate (41.5%), strikeout rate (38%), xERA (2.45) and xBA (.170). The fact that Díaz opted out of a contract that guaranteed him $38 million over the next two years indicates that he’s set to deservedly cash in as MLB’s most coveted reliever available this offseason. He got a fair amount of grief from Mets fans during his up-and-down tenure in Queens, but New York’s bullpen would look a lot shakier without him fronting it.
12. Michael King, SP
Age: 31 | Former team: Padres | Prediction: Mets
After years mired in the Yankees bullpen, King got a chance to be a full-time starter with the Padres in 2024 and thrived, posting a 2.95 ERA and 3.33 FIP across 173 2/3 innings. He seemed poised to carry that success over into ‘25, putting up a 2.59 ERA through mid-May, before a shoulder injury landed him on the shelf for three months. Upon return, the results just weren’t there, so how teams evaluate his health will be the big factor in what type of deal he lands. King has shown he can be great, but he’s a high-upside player with a good amount of risk.
13. Trent Grisham, CF
Age: 29 | Former team: Yankees | Prediction: Royals
Grisham picked a good time to double his previous career high of home runs, launching 34 dingers this year while solidifying center field for the Yankees despite his once-elite defense declining to roughly league-average. He might never again approach quite that much power output away from Yankee Stadium, but the well-traveled lefty is a strong, durable option for teams shopping for an outfielder who don’t win the sweepstakes for Tucker or Bellinger.
14. Munetaka Murakami, 1B/3B
Age: 26 | Former team: Yakult Swallows (NPB) | Prediction: Padres
Murakami has been Japan’s most powerful slugger for years now, peaking with 56 homers in his age-22 season in 2022. Scouts view him as a third baseman in the short-term but he’ll likely end up at first eventually. He’s posted a 28.5% strikeout rate over the past three seasons, so he could settle in as a Three True Outcomes hitter in the U.S.. If that power output holds, though, that will make him one of this year’s most sought-after prizes, putting his contract in the nine-figure range.
15. Tatsuya Imai, SP
Age: 28 | Former team: Seibu Lions (NPB) | Prediction: Cubs
The top international free agent pitcher of the offseason boasts a delightful arsenal, including a forkball and screwball that both generated whiff rates over 40% this year in the NPB, according to The Athletic’s Keith Law. At 5' 11" and 155 pounds, Imai doesn’t possess the stature of a workhorse starter, but his unique approach could confound hitters enough to breed success in the majors.
16. Jorge Polanco, 2B
Age: 32 | Former team: Mariners | Prediction: A’s
Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto drew a lot of criticism last offseason for seemingly not sufficiently upgrading his team’s offense, but Polanco’s career-best campaign went a long way toward dispelling those concerns. Even before he came up with clutch hit after clutch hit during Seattle’s postseason run, the switch-hitter provided plenty of thump in the middle of the Mariners’ lineup while posting a career-high 132 wRC+. Defense has never exactly been Polanco’s calling card, but he can still cut it as one of the league’s most dangerous second basemen if his suitors don’t want to carve out the DH spot for him.
17. Gleyber Torres, 2B
Age: 29 | Former team: Tigers | Prediction: Pirates
It was another ho-hum, productive year for Torres, who seems to have settled into a 110 wRC+, 15–20 home run per season kind of a player. That’s certainly not a bad floor to have, particularly at second base, though Torres’s defensive metrics there aren’t great, so it’s no guarantee he stays at that position for long. He had to settle for a one-year deal last winter, and while there were positive signs from his 2025 campaign—career bests in OBP (.358) and xwOBA (.371)—it’s a fair question to ask whether or not that production meaningfully improved his position in the market.
18. Eugenio Suárez, 3B
Age: 34 | Former team: Mariners/Diamondbacks | Prediction: Rangers
Suárez ranked fifth in the majors with 49 home runs in 2025, but there are quite a few warning signs about the slugger’s longevity. He’s long been one of the most whiff-prone hitters in the league, his production cratered after a midseason return to the Mariners and his defense is already poor enough that his glove is best kept in his locker. All that said, he could make a massive difference in the middle of the lineup on a short-term deal if everything goes right.
19. Ryan O’Hearn, 1B
Age: 32 | Former team: Padres/Orioles | Prediction: Reds
A feel-good breakout hitter in his age-31 season, O’Hearn absolutely raked for the Orioles in the first half before returning to his career norm upon being traded to the Padres—that is, a slightly above-average hitter at first base. There’s a good chance 2025 will be the only year he ever makes it to the All-Star Game, and a true World Series contender will likely want more from his position. But the lefty’s bat-to-ball skill and commendable defense at least gives him a high production floor.
20. Brandon Woodruff, SP
Age: 33 | Former team: Brewers | Prediction: Braves
A shoulder injury cost Woodruff the better part of two seasons, but he returned in July and immediately looked as sharp as ever. A strained lat cut his season short just before the postseason, and questions about durability seem like they’re simply part of the package for the two-time All-Star. There’s little question about his ability to dominate, with a career 3.10 ERA and 29.2% strikeout rate, so expect at least a few teams to take a chance on a potential top-of-the-rotation stalwart.
21. J.T. Realmuto, C
Age: 35 | Former team: Phillies | Prediction: Phillies
The only catcher on these rankings has been a rock-solid member of the Phillies’ championship-contending core for seven years. Unfortunately, his first below-average offensive season in a decade signals either a classic case of a catcher declining in his mid-30s or some truly terrible timing. A return to Philadelphia seems like the best-case scenario for all involved, as he’s likely more valuable to the Phils than anyone else at this stage of his career.
22. Robert Suarez, RP
Age: 35 | Former team: Padres | Prediction: Yankees
Suarez turned in his second dominant season in a row as the Padres’ closer, posting a sub-3.00 ERA and FIP to go along with 40 saves in 70 appearances. He throws hard, and while it’s possible teams are concerned about him maintaining that velocity into his late 30s, Suarez has produced enough that he’ll be among the most sought-after closers on the market after Diaz.
23. Zac Gallen, SP
Age: 30 | Former team: Diamondbacks | Prediction: Tigers
Gallen has made 126 starts over the past four seasons and has logged the third-most innings in baseball during that span, so durability is clearly among his strongest traits. Whether or not all that mileage has begun to wear him down is another issue. He posted career worsts in ERA (4.58), FIP (4.50) and strikeout rate (21.5%) in 2025, a swift decline after back-to-back top-10 Cy Young Award finishes in ‘22 and ‘23. Given his track record, it wouldn’t be a shock if Gallen opted for a short-term deal to regain some of his lost value in search of a bigger payday this time next year.
24. Devin Williams, RP
Age: 31 | Former team: Yankees | Prediction: Cubs
The Yankees traded for Williams with the expectation he’d be the team’s shut-down closer. Instead, the two-time All-Star got off to a calamitous start to the year that left him with a 5.01 ERA and out of ninth-inning duties by the end of July. But the underlying numbers show that Williams hasn’t lost any of his elite-level stuff. There’s risk here, of course (we’re talking about relief pitchers, after all), but if Williams can successfully hit the reset button after the most tumultuous season of his otherwise very successful career, he’ll end up being a steal.
25. Luis Arraez, 1B
Age: 29 | Former team: Padres | Prediction: Guardians
Baseball’s King of Contact is beyond compare. Nobody else runs a strikeout rate like Arraez’s career 6.1%, and for a while, his singular approach was remarkably effective. Arraez won three straight batting titles in three different uniforms from 2022 to ‘24, averaging 630 plate appearances with a 123 wRC+ during that span. That production took a big dip in ‘25, as Arraez put up career worsts with a .292 batting average and 104 wRC+. When the singles stop falling in, Arraez is left with a lot of empty calories, particularly when factoring in his defensive limitations. He seems like a good candidate to chase a one-year platform deal to get back on more solid footing for next winter.
26. Raisel Iglesias, RP
Age: 36 | Former team: Braves | Prediction: Giants
Coming off a career-best 2024 campaign, Iglesias allowing at least one earned run in half of his 22 appearances through the end of May greatly contributed to the Braves’ abrupt downfall last season. From there, however, he looked far more like the dominant reliever he’d been for nearly a decade. Iglesias’s age may prevent him from drawing anything more than a two-year deal, but all the Statcast metrics indicate he still has enough left in the tank to be a reliable closer.
27. Zack Littell, SP
Age: 30 | Former team: Reds/Rays | Prediction: Orioles
Littell set a career high in starts (32) and innings (186 2/3) last season, elevating himself to a reliable rotation mainstay just three years after being a full-time reliever. He doesn’t miss many bats, he doesn’t walk people much and he now can take the ball every fifth day. An alarming home run rate (1.74 per nine innings) should go down pitching away from Tampa Bay and Cincinnati, so Littell will likely be enticing for teams looking to add to their pitching depth (which is pretty much all of them).
28. Harrison Bader, CF
Age: 32 | Former team: Phillies/Twins | Prediction: Dodgers
From 2022 to ‘24, Bader put up a .284 on-base percentage—ninth-worst among 230 qualified hitters—with an 80 wRC+. He picked a great year to break out of that rut, posting career highs across the board over 146 games while playing his usual strong defense. That should set him up nicely for a multi-year deal, particularly in a year with a relatively thin crop of starting-caliber center fielders. Bader’s uptick in offensive production seems tied to him adding bat speed, which upped his barrel rate but also his strikeout in whiff rates. It was clearly a worthwhile tradeoff, and inquiring teams will need to decide whether or not its effect can be a lasting one.
29. Lucas Giolito, SP
Age: 30 | Former team: Red Sox | Prediction: Diamondbacks
If you need some convincing that the Angels have inherited the mantle of MLB’s most cursed franchise, consider Giolito’s last couple of years. After he was traded from the White Sox to the Halos at the 2023 trade deadline in an ill-conceived attempt at contention, he posted a 6.89 ERA in six starts for Los Angeles, was put on waivers and claimed by Cleveland, where he was even worse, then signed with the Red Sox in the offseason and had to undergo elbow surgery before he threw a pitch for them. Fortunately, 2025 brought some respite in the form of 26 starts with a 3.41 ERA, albeit with a sharp downturn in strikeout rate. The end product is a mid-rotation arm with a heavy dose of risk attached.
30. Shota Imanaga, SP
Age: 32 | Former team: Cubs | Prediction: Angels
Imanaga was a revelation in his first few months in Chicago, powering a fifth-place NL Cy Young finish in 2024. But his performance derailed this year to the point that the Cubs left him in the bullpen with their season on the line against the Brewers in the NLDS, and a mutual decline of options in his initial four-year contract has resulted in his unexpected entry into free agency. There’s certainly a chance Imanaga emerges as a reliable starter, but his Statcast metrics and diminishing returns indicate a gloomier future.
31. Ha-Seong Kim, SS
Age: 30 | Former team: Rays/Braves | Prediction: Braves
Kim was well-regarded enough last offseason that the penny-pinching Rays signed him to a two-year, $29 million contract despite needing shoulder surgery. However, he only ended up playing 24 games for them during an unproductive recovery period before being put on waivers and claimed by the Braves for the final month of the season. Kim played well enough in Atlanta to feel comfortable exercising an opt-out clause to re-enter the open market. That may pay off for the sure-handed defender in a barren shortstop class, but it’d be unwise to expect much from him at the plate.
32. Jo-Hsi Hsu, SP
Age: 25 | Former team: Wei Chuan Dragons (CPBL) | Prediction: Giants
Hsu is a unique MLB prospect in that he comes not from the KBO or NPB, as most overseas prospects do, but from Taiwan’s top league, the CPBL. That may prevent some teams from betting on him, but with a fastball that sits 95 to 98 mph along with several solid secondary offerings, he has the potential to get along just fine stateside.
33. Ryan Helsley, RP
Age: 31 | Former team: Mets/Cardinals | Prediction: Tigers
From 2022 to ‘24, Helsley ranked third among all relief pitchers with a 1.83 ERA, establishing a reputation as one of the league’s most lockdown closers. He picked a bad time to have a bad year, posting a 7.20 ERA after a midseason trade to the Mets, leaving him with a 4.50 ERA for the season. Helsley still throws gas, and whatever issues plagued him during the second half of the season, it’s a safe bet that he won’t run a .342 BABIP ever again. Teams will give him a chance to close again, and he might be better off taking a one-year deal to hit the market again next year in a better position to cash in.
34. Brad Keller, RP
Age: 30 | Former team: Cubs | Prediction: Rangers
Once a mediocre starter for the Royals, Keller found his niche in 2025 as a reliever, where his played-up stuff produced a sparkling 0.96 WHIP and 2.07 ERA. The righty ranked in the 93rd percentile or better in xERA (2.82), xBA (.200), groundball rate (56.6%) and hard-hit rate (30.6%). He may not be tabbed as a closer, but he’s shown enough to at least be a top setup man.
35. Merrill Kelly, SP
Age: 37 | Former team: Rangers/Diamondbacks | Prediction: Padres
Kelly was perceived as one of the more dependable arms up for grabs at the trade deadline, but he was precisely replacement-level for the Rangers after the Diamondbacks sent the Texas native back to his home state. The veteran can still eat some innings, but it’s hard to imagine a team with World Series aspirations signing Kelly with the intention of him starting a playoff game.
36. Chris Bassitt, SP
Age: 37 | Former team: Blue Jays | Prediction: Blue Jays
Bassitt is the metronome of this year’s class of pitchers. He’s made at least 30 starts in each of the last four years, with a 3.77 ERA and a strikeout rate that’s never wavered from 22%. At his age and declining velocity, though, he’s at best a depth piece for teams who need an extra reliable arm to help cover innings and get them to the postseason, not necessarily somebody you’d feel comfortable starting in a playoff game. That’s still a valuable profile, though, and even entering his age-37 season, Bassitt could command a multi-year deal.
37. Nick Martinez, SP
Age: 35 | Former team: Reds | Prediction: Angels
Since MLB implemented the qualifying offer system in 2012, 144 players have been offered one. Martinez became just the 14th to accept it last year, locking in a one-year, $21.5 million deal for himself. He began the year as a rotation mainstay but, by year’s end, was back in his old familiar swingman role. Martinez logged career highs in starts (26) and innings (165 2/3), but also posted his worst ERA (4.45) and strikeout rate (17%) since returning to the majors from Japan in ‘22. Despite those results, Martinez has had a sub-4.00 xERA in each of the past four years, and his versatility will likely earn him a good bit of interest on the open market.
38. Adrian Houser, SP
Age: 33 | Former team: White Sox/Rays | Prediction: Athletics
Coming off their historic 121-loss season, the White Sox entered 2025 desperate to unearth some arms to improve their outlook. Houser was a godsend in that regard, posting a 2.10 ERA in 11 starts before being shipped to the Rays at the trade deadline. The veteran ground ball artist couldn’t keep it up for them, though, and likely won’t be seen as anything more than a back-end rotation arm.
39. Miguel Andujar, 3B/LF
Age: 31 | Former team: Reds/A’s | Prediction: Pirates
Andujar built a lot of hype by finishing as the runner-up in the 2018 AL Rookie of the Year race for the Yankees. He then utterly failed to proceed on that promise for the next four years before quietly becoming a decent bat once away from the spotlight in Pittsburgh and Oakland. The Reds acquired him at the trade deadline this year and benefited from the best few months of his career, as he recorded a sterling 153 OPS+ in 34 games to help propel Cincinnati to a surprise playoff berth. The downside is he’s completely unplayable in the field, and his track record isn’t long enough to feel great about making him your full-time DH.
40. Mike Yastrzemski, RF
Age: 35 | Former team: Royals/Giants | Prediction: Rays
Yastrzemski has remarkably logged seven straight seasons with a WAR figure between 2–3 since debuting for the Giants in 2019, and he appeared reenergized by a midseason trade to the Royals. But a late start to his major-league career leaves him as a somewhat risky proposition to continue that streak as he enters the back half of his thirties.
41. Kenley Jansen, RP
Age: 38 | Former team: Angels | Prediction: Reds
Jansen has kept on chugging since leaving the Dodgers after the 2021 campaign and now sits in fourth place on the all-time saves leaderboard with 476, two behind third-place Lee Smith and likely one more season away from the 500 club. His strikeout rate took a sharp dip last year, but you can bet he’ll join his fourth team in five years this winter and continue to pile up saves until Father Time comes knocking.
42. Tyler Mahle, SP
Age: 31 | Former team: Rangers | Prediction: Cardinals
Mahle made just 19 starts in his two years with the Rangers, with the start of his tenure spent recovering from Tommy John surgery and the last chunk wiped out due to shoulder fatigue. That’s not exactly the bill of health you want for a starting pitcher, and his 19.1% strikeout rate last season isn’t encouraging, either, but he did record a 2.54 ERA for Texas when he was on the mound.
43. Kazuma Okamoto, 1B
Age: 30 | Former team: Yomiuri Giants (NPB) | Prediction: Diamondbacks
Okamoto doesn’t have as much hype around him as Murakami, but he’s been arguably as productive in the same league. He’s shown less power but more contact in NPB, with seven straight seasons of at least 25 homers before an arm injury cut his 2025 season short. Though he’s played mostly third base in Japan, scouts project him to stick at first in the U.S., putting more pressure on his bat to excel. His age and place on the defensive spectrum have him here on our list, but his bat has the potential to make this ranking look too conservative.
44. Cedric Mullins, CF
Age: 31 | Former team: Mets/Orioles | Prediction: Yankees
Mullins appeared destined for stardom after a dazzling 2021 campaign in which he hit 30 homers, stole 30 bases and put up a 136 wRC+ in his age-26 season. That’s proven to be the outlier on his otherwise solid resume. He’s averaged around 15 home runs and 25 stolen bases over the past three years, with a 99 wRC+ and capable defense in center field. Mullins’s xwOBA has not topped .300 in any of the past four years, though, so teams will have legitimate questions about his bat justifying an everyday spot in the lineup.
45. Phil Maton, RP
Age: 33 | Former team: Rangers/Cardinals | Prediction: Yankees
Maton quietly produced career bests in bWAR (1.3), ERA (2.79) and WHIP (1.06) last season. He may not be the most exciting reliever out there, but every team could use an arm like him in the bullpen as a bridge to the closer.
46. Marcell Ozuna, DH
Age: 35 | Former team: Braves | Prediction: Rockies
After a fourth-place MVP finish in 2024, Ozuna suffered a stark power outage this year but partially compensated with MLB’s third-best walk rate, behind only Aaron Judge and Juan Soto, leaving him with a .232/.355/.400 slash line. For someone who’s strictly been a DH for three years now, it’s less than a contender wants.
47. Justin Verlander, SP
Age: 43 | Former team: Giants | Prediction: Rangers
His 4–11 record notwithstanding, 2025 was a good bounce-back for the future Hall of Famer, whose 29 starts were his most in six years. Verlander got a small uptick of velocity back, which helped nudge his strikeout rate over 20%, and finished the year with a 3.85 ERA and identical FIP. There’s still some value left in his right arm as a back-end starter even as he enters his 21st big-league season.
48. Tyler Rogers, RP
Age: 35 | Former team: Mets/Giants | Prediction: Red Sox
His funky delivery, low-80s velocity and miniscule strikeout rates essentially make it impossible for Rogers to ever be a full-time closer. But none of that prevents him from being one of baseball’s most consistent and productive bullpen arms. The industry clearly values him as such, given the sizable prospect haul he returned in his midseason trade to the Mets. No pitcher has appeared in more games over the past five seasons than Rogers (374), who has 2.71 ERA during that span.
49. Emilio Pagán, RP
Age: 35 | Former team: Reds | Prediction: Braves
In his age-34 season, Pagán got his first extended opportunity to close games since his breakout year with the Rays in 2019, and he ran with it. He put up a 2.88 ERA and 30% strikeout rate in 70 appearances, with a fastball that averaged 95.8 mph—the highest of his career. Pagán’s home run issues should improve away from Cincinnati, and while his more erratic track record puts him a couple tiers below the top-end closers on the market, he should still get a chance to close games for his next employer.
50. Kyle Finnegan, RP
Age: 34 | Former team: Tigers/Nationals | Prediction: White Sox
Would you have guessed that Finnegan has recorded the fifth-most saves since 2023? That was a surprise to me, and while the righthander doesn’t have the overpowering, swing-and-miss stuff most teams value in the closer’s role, he’s at least provided serviceable production over an extended stretch, with a career 3.55 ERA. Like Pagán, Finnegan could be an attractive option on a one-year deal for a rebuilding team in need of some experience in the later innings, which could set him up to be a valuable trade chip at next year’s deadline.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as MLB Free Agent Rankings and Signing Predictions.
