A contract year is a pivotal season for any professional athlete. If a player performs well, they’ll have opened the door for a big payday when they hit the open market. While a strong campaign before free agency could tack on millions to their next contract, falling short of expectations will have the reverse effect.
The 2027 free agency class will have plenty of talent available, but not everyone has put their best foot forward during the ‘26 season. There have been a number of impending free agents who struggled this year, but many who have vastly exceeded their expectations.
We’re going to look at seven impending free agents who have raised their stock in this year, and could secure a lucrative contract in the winter.
Guardians SP Foster Griffin
After a successful three-year stint in Japan, Griffin signed a one-year, $5.5 million with the Nationals last offseason and emerged as an All-Star in Washington. Griffin wasn’t able to agree to an extension with the Nationals, which ultimately prompted them to offload him to the Guardians before the trade deadline.
The lefthander will be a highly intriguing free agent this offseason. He’s enjoyed a terrific campaign, logging a 3.25 ERA with 125 strikeouts against 33 walks across 138 1/3 innings. There was plenty of uncertainty about Griffin heading into the season, considering the 31-year-old hadn’t pitched in MLB since 2022—and even then had only made seven total appearances without much success—but he’s vastly outperformed expectations in his return to the majors.
Phillies 2B Luis Arraez
Once regarded as a pure contact hitter with no true defensive position to call his own, Arraez has flipped the latter narrative about his game. The 29-year-old continues to hit for a high batting average with limited power, but he’s transformed into one of the league’s best defensive second basemen this season. Arraez owns a .313 batting average and a .781 OPS across 114 games. Defensively, he ranks 10th in MLB (second among infielders) with 11 outs above average and he’s tied for 13th with eight runs prevented. That’s a huge improvement from last season when he had -6 outs above average at first base, precluding his one-year, $12 million contract he signed with the Giants before heading to Philadelphia ahead of the trade deadline.
Arraez will return to free agency this offseason for the second time in as many years, but his improved defense this season should help him secure the long-term contract that eluded him last offseason.
Padres SP Casey Mize
Mize will hit free agency at the age of 29, coming off what has been his best season to date. Dealt to the Padres from Detroit at the trade deadline, Mize owns a 3.38 ERA with 92 strikeouts and 24 walks in 96 innings. Across 18 starts, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 draft has already accumulated the most fWAR of his career (2.9), and he’s surrendered just seven home runs. He was an All-Star last season but has been even better this year despite not getting the nod to represent the Tigers at the Midsummer Classic. If he can finish the season on a high note in San Diego, Mize should have plenty of suitors during his first foray into free agency.
Mariners LF Randy Arozarena
Arozarena has been excellent during his two-year stint with the Mariners. In 2026, he’s produced career highs in OPS (.822) and wRC+ (141) while recording 16 home runs, 52 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. Arozarena, who turns 32 in February, should draw interest from a number of teams looking to add another power-hitting right-handed hitter to the mix. His defense in left field leaves a bit to be desired, but his production at the plate outweighs that. And in what figures to be a rather limited free agent class among offensive-minded outfielders, Arozarena could secure a big-money, multi-year contract on the open market.
Twins C Ryan Jeffers
Jeffers has put himself in a great position to cash in during the offseason when he hits free agency. There won’t be many established backstops on the open market this winter, so Jeffers, who has been outstanding when healthy, should be a popular guy. This season, the 29-year-old owns a .878 OPS and 148 wRC+. In 59 games, he’s recorded 10 home runs and 40 RBIs while maintaining an impressive 13.8% walk rate against a 16.3% strikeout rate. He doesn’t have the strongest arm behind the plate, but he’s a good blocker and has adequate framing skills.
Marlins SP Sandy Alcantara
Alcantara has been somewhat inconsistent since his Cy Young campaign back in 2022, but he’s looked sharp in ‘26. Regularly pitching deep into games for the Marlins, the 30-year-old has been a workhorse and leads MLB in innings pitched (163 2/3). He owns a 3.52 ERA with 128 strikeouts against 42 walks.
After struggling with surrendering hard hits last season, when he posted a career-worst 45% hard hit percentage, the righthander has reduced that to a career-best 36% in ‘26. Alcantara’s contract includes a club option for next season worth $21 million, though it doesn’t include a buyout if Miami decides not to exercise the option. It would typically be a no-brainer decision with the workhorse resembling his old self, but these are the perenially cheap Marlins we’re talking about. If he does reach free agency, Alcantara will be one of the top arms on the market.
White Sox RP Sean Newcomb
Newcomb is in the midst of the best season of his career at the age of 33. The White Sox reliever has been excellent, logging a 2.66 ERA across 44 appearances while recording 60 strikeouts and surrendering just two home runs in 64 1/3 innings pitched. After making just 14 appearances between the 2023 and ‘24 seasons, Newcomb was solid for the Athletics and Red Sox last year. He’s elevated his game further still in ‘26, emerging as one of MLB’s best relievers and a reliable late-innings option for the White Sox.
For most of his career, Newcomb leaned primarily upon his fastball. He threw the pitch more than 50% of the time every season until ‘25, when he adjusted his arsenal and started implementing a slurve and sinker. Those two pitches have served him well this year, too, and it’s helped him limit hard contact to a higher degree than ever before. As a quality left-handed reliever, Newcomb shouldn’t have any trouble securing a raise on the $4.5 million salary he’s earning this season.
