Top-15 available free agents as winter meetings begin – elcajon newson Elcajon News only

The winter meetings begin in Dallas this week with several big names off the board.

Blake Snell is a Dodger (sigh). Willy Adames is a Giant (sorry, Ha-Seong Kim). Luis Severino is a Sacramento Athletic (wait … what?).

The early movement seems to point toward a hectic week at baseball’s chief offseason event, with Juan Soto seemingly closing in on a Shohtai Ohtani-like deal, the Chiba Lotte Marines preparing to post Roki Sasaki and plenty of rumors circling plenty of players at the top of the free agent market.

Here’s the latest …

 

1   |   OF Juan Soto

• The Yankees and Mets have increased their bids to more than $700 million, according to the New York Post. The 26-year-old paired a career-high 41 home runs in 2024 with 109 RBIs and a .989 OPS. Soto headlines the 12 players who rejected qualifying offers earlier this month, meaning his new team will lose a draft pick for signing Soto.

2   |   SP Roki Sasaki

• The 23-year-old Japanese is expected to be posted in during the winter meetings, which will trigger the start of a frenzied 45-day window for teams to land him. As an international free agent younger than 25 years old, Sasaki is subject to teams’ international bonus pools, which reset when the new signing window opens on Jan. 15. Because his earnings will be capped, all teams are in play for Sasaki.

3   |   SP Corbin Burnes

• The Blue Jays have had an in-person meeting with Burnes, according to MLB Network. The 2021 NL Cy Young winner won a career-high 15 games (2.92 ERA) after the offseason trade to Baltimore. Burnes declined his qualifying offer from the Orioles earlier this month.

4   |   SP Max Fried

• The Yankees recently met with the former Padres draft pick, according to Yes Network. The Blue Jays, Red Sox and Orioles have also reportedly shown interest in Fried, who declined a qualifying offer last month. Fried had a 3.07 ERA in eight years in the Braves’ rotation.

5   |   3B Alex Bregman

• The Astros’ top priority, according to MLB.com, is keeping Bregman. The 30-year-old would be on the Phillies’ radar if they wind up trading Alec Bohm, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. The Red Sox reportedly are also showing interest in Bregman, who is coming off a career-low .768 OPS. Bregman declined the Astros’ qualifying offer earlier this month.

6   |   RP Tanner Scott

• Likely the best impact reliever on the market, the 30-year-old Scott is coming off an All-Star selection and a 22-save campaign that began with the Marlins and ended with a dominant turn with the Padres in the postseason.

7   |   OF Anthony Santander

• The 30-year-old switch-hitter is the Blue Jays’ No. 1 back-up option if they fall short in their Soto pursuit, according to MLB.com. Santander is coming off a career-high 44 homers and the first All-Star selection of his career. He has also been mentioned as a target for the Nationals. Santander declined his qualifying offer earlier this month.

8   |   OF Teoscar Hernandez

• The 32-year-old playoff hero will have interest from the Yankees, Dodgers, Red Sox and Blue Jays, primarily as a Soto contingency plan accord to various reports. Hernandez hit 33 homers in one year with the Dodgers and averaged 26 over the last six seasons. He declined a qualifying offer earlier this month.

9   |   OF Jurickson Profar

• The 31-year-old is coming off starting the All-Star Game for the NL, a bounce-back after posting the worst WAR among all players in 2023 with the Rockies. Profar’s market will be interesting as he had no takers until late in spring training in 2023 after opting out of his original deal with the Padres. He returned to San Diego in 2024 for $1 million.

10   |   1B Christian Walker

• The former Diamondbacks first baseman is among the contingencies if the Astros fail to retain Bregman, according to MLB.com. The Diamondbacks, Nationals and Yankees have also been tied to Walker, who is coming off a third Gold Glove season and has 95 homers over the last three years (.813 OPS).

11   |   RP Jeff Hoffman

• The Phillies, according to The Athletic, could explore a reunion with Hoffman. An All-Star set-up man after striking out 89 over 66 ⅓ innings (2.17 ERA) with the Phillies, Hoffman has reportedly landed on some teams’ radar as a starting pitcher project. Hoffman hasn’t started since 2022.

12   |   RP David Robertson

• He declined his half of a $7 million mutual option after posting a 3.00 ERA over 72 innings in 2024 games as a set-up man with the Rangers. He struck out 99 batters. The 39-year-old has 177 saves over his 16-year career.

13   |   SS Ha-Seong Kim

• The Giants appear to be out of the running after landing Adames over the weekend. The Detroit Free Press has reported that the Tigers have interest, while the Blue Jays and the Padres have been tied to Kim, who is coming off shoulder surgery that will eat into the 2025 season.

14   |   RHP Jack Flaherty

• The Tigers, according to The Athletic, have some interest in a reunion with Flaherty, whom they traded to Los Angeles before the deadline. The 29-year-old SoCal native had a 3.58 ERA in 10 starts after the trade to the Dodgers and a 7.36 ERA in five postseason starts.

15   |   LHP Sean Manaea

• Even after signing Frankie Montas and Clay Holmes on the cheap, the Mets remain interested in a reunion with Manaea, according to The Athletic. The former Padre had a 3.47 ERA in 32 starts last year in New York, leading him to opt out of $13.5 million for 2025 in search of a bigger payday.