MLB free agency rankings 2025-26: Is Red Sox’s Alex Bregman destined for big payday if career year continues?

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April showers bring May free agency rankings updates.

Enough said, you know the drill.

Notes: Whenever you see a number, a slash and another number, that’s a reference to contract years and total earnings. For instance, the shorthand for Bryce Harper’s 11-year, $330 million deal would be “11/330.” Ages listed below are for the 2026 season.

1. Kyle Tucker, Cubs OF, age 29 (April rank 1)

Following a supersonic start to his Cubs tenure, Tucker has slightly cooled off over the past month. The underlying numbers indicate Tucker’s May swoon is just a small blip. He’s still the runaway top free agent for the upcoming class and a lot would have to happen for that to change. There has been no additional extension chatter over the past month between Tucker and the Cubs, increasing the already high likelihood he reaches free agency this winter.

2. Alex Bregman (opt-out), Red Sox 3B, age 32 (2)

Bregman picked a darn good time to have a career year. The veteran currently has the sixth highest OPS in MLB. His Red Sox haven’t ventured far beyond the .500 mark this year — they entered Thursday 25-26 — but things would be much bleaker in Beantown if not for Bregman.

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Boston recently played a three-game set in Detroit against the Tigers, who Bregman spurned over the offseason. Instead of accepting Detroit’s more traditional long-term offer, Bregman went for Boston’s short-term, high value, opt-out laden deal. That’s paid off mightily so far. Tigers fans, despite their team’s sensational 2025, did not forget, booing Bregman upon his arrival in the Motor City. That may be a short-sighted decision, considering Bregman looks like a near lock to activate his opt-out and re-enter the market this winter.

3. Pete Alonso (opt-out), Mets 1B, age 31 (3)

Alonso’s strikeout rate has skyrocketed over the past few weeks, going from 14.6 percent in March/April to 33.7 percent in May, baseball’s sixth-highest punch-out percentage this month. His overall numbers aren’t terrible, the Polar Bear is still cranking the ball with authority, but it’s a notable decrease from his hot start. Lefty hurlers, in particular, are giving Alonso fits as the Mets first baseman is currently 3-for-23 with 12 punchouts against southpaws this month. Some of that is surely small sample size, but Alonso’s chase and in-zone whiff rates vs. lefties have spiked notably in May.

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This may seem like picking nits, but with a player like Alonso, whose entire value is so dependent on offensive production, minor trends can become major concerns. We saw as much last winter when he failed to secure the contract he was looking for. Is Pete one of the top 5 hitters in the game? Top 10? Top 25? The answer matters a great deal as far as his bank account is concerned. We considered dropping Alonso below Kyle Schwarber, but sided with Alonso’s age, positional advantage and our belief that he gets back to elite production.

4. Kyle Schwarber, Phillies DH, age 33 (4)

Schwarber just keeps raking. His 17 homers are currently tied with Shohei Ohtani for the MLB lead. His .963 OPS is tied for fourth, behind only Aaron Judge, Freddie Freeman and Ohtani. And he’s doing it all while striking out at a career low 21.6 percent clip.

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The likeliest scenario still remains a reunion with the Phillies, who desperately need to retain their slugging DH in order to keep their competitive window open. But with every long ball, Schwarber’s price tag keeps on rising.

5. Framber Valdez, Astros SP, age 32 (7)
6. Michael King, Padres SP, age 31 (8) (2026 mutual option)
7. Dylan Cease, Padres SP, age 30 (6)

Valdez has a couple stinkers in April, but he’s been sensational as of late. As long as he continues to conjure an avalanche of ground balls, his trademark, Framber will stay toward the top of the list.

Consistency has been the calling card for King, who has yet to allow more than three runs in a single start this season.

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Cease has had a slow start by his standards (ERA), but that’s mostly been about bad luck rather than any notable change to the right-hander’s profile. His peripheral numbers remain strong and he has been better in his past three outings (6 ER in 20 1/3 with 25 Ks). We aren’t too worried.

8. Marcell Ozuna, Braves DH, age 35 (5)

The Big Bear’s numbers have slid a smidge in May, though he’s still a top 25 hitter by most metrics. It won’t help Ozuna that he’s hitting the open market alongside Schwarber and Alonso, two similarly one-dimensional sluggers who have him beat in age and positional flexibility. Ozuna has not started a game in the outfield since April 2, 2023. He remains a dynamic hitter, but signing Ozuna means clogging up your DH spot for the entirety of his contract, something that not every team will be interested in.

9. Cody Bellinger, Yankees OF, age 30 (NR)

Bellinger has bounced back from a slow start, posting a .983 OPS across his past 25 games entering Thursday while providing great defense in two outfield spots. That hot stretch has pushed the “will-he-opt-out” meter back towards yes, though chances are it will be a borderline call once again for the former NL MVP.

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Last winter, Bellinger declined to activate his opt-out while still a member of the Cubs because he, and his representation, weren’t confident enough that Bellinger could garner more than the $27.5 million he was due in 2025. Chicago didn’t want Bellinger on their roster at that price and shipped him off to The Bronx for nothing but salary relief. Bellinger’s salary drops to $25 million next year, the last year of his contract, making it more likely he opts out this go-round.

10. Bo Bichette, Blue Jays SS, age 28 (14)

11. Gleyber Torres, Tigers 2B, age 29 (25)

Bichette is making that subpar 2024 look like a blip instead of a trend. The sweet-swinging shortstop cut his long locks before the season, but in most other respects, he’s playing like the Bo Bichette who ranked as one of the game’s top shortstop from 2021 to 2023. The home runs haven’t fully returned, but if that happens too, Bichette could push himself over the $100 million mark.

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Just six qualified hitters have more walks than strikeouts right now: Luis Arraez, Geraldo Perdomo, Kyle Tucker, Mookie Betts, Juan Soto and Torres. It’s been a fantastic first two months in Detroit for Gleyber, who has sliced his strikeout rate in half. That’s come alongside big improvements in his batted ball data. He’s still a bad infielder, but the bearded version of Torres is thriving outside The Bronx.

12. Munetaka Murakami, Yakult Swallows 3B, age 26 (9)

The highly-touted Japanese slugger has been sidelined with a vague upper body injury since our most recent free-agent update and sinks on the list as a result. In the 2023 WBC, a 23-year-old Murakami hit fifth for champion Japan, slotted right behind Shohei Ohtani and Masataka Yoshida. He and the Swallows have had this upcoming winter circled for some time as the moment Murakami would make the MLB leap. But if his jump-year continues to be so thoroughly derailed by injuries, there’s a chance the NPB’s all-time single season domestic home run leader stays in Japan for one more year.

13. Cedric Mullins, Orioles CF, age 31 (12)
14. Josh Naylor, D-backs 1B, age 29 (13)

Mullins and Naylor have cooled off significantly in May, with OPS point drops of .318 and .249 respectively. They both stay relatively high on our rankings because we think they’ll even out to career norms. Given Baltimore’s catastrophic decline into competitive irrelevance, there’s an increasing chance that Mullins gets traded. That would probably raise the ceiling on his free agency as a midseason trade would make him ineligible to receive a qualifying offer. Teams would then be more inclined to sign him, considering they wouldn’t have to forfeit a draft pick for doing so.

15. Luis Arraez, Padres 1B, age 28 (15)

After a slow start and an injury scare, Arraez is back to his old tricks, well… trick. He really just hits a bunch of singles. Baseball’s batting average merchant is “only” hitting .301 right now, which is a tick below what we’ve come to expect from Arraez. That number should continue trending up, making Arraez a puzzling free agent proposition. He can’t play defense, he doesn’t run the bases well, he’s allergic to hard contact, but boy oh boy can he conjure up a good piece of hitting.

16. Zac Gallen, D-backs SP, age 29 (10)
17. Tyler Mahle, Rangers SP, age 32 (16)
18. Chris Bassitt, Blue Jays SP, age 37 (18)

We’re a little worried about Gallen. His surface-level and peripheral numbers have been in steady decline for a few years now. Gallen is one of only seven qualified starters this year with a HR/9 at 1.5 or over and BB/9 at 4.0 or over. In other words, he’s allowing a lot of base runners and giving up a lot of home runs. That’s a bad combo. Some team with faith in its pitching development group will leap at the chance to try and refurbish a fallen ace, but that’s what Gallen is right now.

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Mahle has a 1.47 ERA, the fifth-best starter ERA in baseball, just like everyone predicted. He’s been a huge part of a Rangers rotation that ranks second in starter ERA, just like everyone predicted. Mahle has allowed two runs or fewer in all 10 of his starts this year thanks to a stellar fastball-splitter combo that has kept hitters guessing. The longer he keeps this up, the higher he’ll climb on the list.

Bassitt on the other hand, feels nice and comfy here in the late teens as a reliable, but unspectacular veteran arm. It’s a delightful profile; Bassit doesn’t walk dudes, throws a ton of different pitches and hoovers up outs with his sinker. Do you want him working through a lineup three times in a playoff game? No, but tons of contenders will be looking at Bassitt to round out their rotations.

19. Trent Grisham, Yankees OF, age 29 (36)

The biggest riser on the list, Grisham just continues to rake. After three straight seasons of mediocre results (two in San Diego, one in The Bronx) the mustachioed outfielder is finally capitalizing on his elite plate discipline and impressive power. His .274 season batting average feels due for some regression, but Grisham is always going to run a strong OBP. This is a center fielder on the good side of thirty having a career year as he reaches free agency. That should put Grisham in line for a surprising payday.

20. Griffin Canning, Mets SP, age 29 (24)

With each strong start, Canning’s out-of-nowhere 2025 feels realer and realer. At this point, for the Mets right-hander, it’s all about showing he can do it over a full season. He’ll definitely get the opportunity to prove that. Entering spring training, Canning felt like the prime candidate to be the Mets’ long man, but injuries to Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas pushed him into the rotation. That’s been a massive win so far, for all parties.

21. Ryan Helsley, Cardinals RP, age 31 (20)
22. Luke Weaver, Yankees RP, age 32 (27)
23. Devin Williams, Yankees RP, age 31 (21)

Helsley has never been a control artist, but his walk rate has nearly doubled this season. He’s still effective because, well, he throws 99, but if the walks continue and the batted ball luck gets worse, he could be in some trouble. We still like his overall profile — track record, age, stuff — more than the other free-agent relievers to-be.

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Williams’ early-season struggles pushed him out of New York’s closer role and Weaver into it. That’s paid off for the Yankees so far. Weaver has allowed just one earned run this season in 21 2/3 innings, while Williams has rediscovered his form as the setup guy. Both should end up with multi-year contracts this winter.

24. Jack Flaherty (opt-out), Tigers SP, age 29 (11)

Flaherty’s fastball velocity is down to 92.9, the lowest of his career. His numbers are more meh than disastrous, but if his heat doesn’t resurface it will almost certainly make clubs wary of offering Flaherty a long-term deal. To become a free agent, he’d have to opt out of a $20 million contract for next year, something that looks less and less likely with each underwhelming outing.

25. J.T. Realmuto, Phillies C, age 35 (19)

He’s hitting the ball harder and walking more, but everything else about Realmuto’s offensive profile has continued to decline. He’s currently 21st in OPS among catchers with at least 100 plate appearances. Realmuto is still an elite thrower behind the dish and has a magnificent game-calling reputation, but he hasn’t graded out as an above average framer since 2021. Because he’ll essentially be the only catcher on the open market, Realmuto should get a two-year contract, but the offensive dip is hard to avoid.

The next 25

1. Zach Eflin, Orioles SP, age 31 (17)

2. Robert Suarez, Padres RP, age 35 (22)

3. Ranger Suarez, Phillies SP, age 30 (25)

4. Dustin May, Dodgers SP, age 28 (26)

5. Brandon Woodruff (mutual option), Brewers SP, age 33 (30)

6. Walker Buehler, Red Sox SP, age 31 (31)

7. Austin Hays, Reds OF, age 30 (37)

8. Rhys Hoskins, Brewers 1B, age 33 (42)

9. Paul Goldschmidt, Yankees 1B, age 38 (39)

10. Mike Yastrzemski, Giants OF, age 35 (34)

11. Jorge Polanco, Mariners IF, age 32 (35)

12. Eugenio Suarez, D-backs 3B, age 34 (40)

13. Ryan O’Hearn, Orioles 1B, age 32 (41)

14. Erick Fedde, Cardinals SP, age 33 (33)

15. Nick Martinez, Reds, SP, age 35 (NR)

16. Raisel Iglesias, Braves RP, age 36 (28)

17. Kirby Yates, Dodgers RP, age 38 (29)

18. Jordan Romano, Phillies RP, age 33 (NR)

19. Kyle Finnegan, Nationals RP, age 34 (44)

20. Ramón Laureano, Orioles OF, age 31 (NR)

21. Harrison Bader, Twins OF, age 32 (NR)

22. Willi Castro, Twins UTIL, age 29 (45)

23. Dylan Moore, Mariners UTIL, age 33 (46)

24. Kenley Jansen, Angels RP, age 38 (43)

25. Miles Mikolas, Cardinals SP, age 36 (49)

This news was originally published on this post .

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