With Spring Training less than six weeks away, the MLB free agent market remains active despite several key players already finding new homes, including Japanese stars Tatsuya Imai and Kazuma Okamoto [[1]]. Numerous impactful players are still seeking contracts, creating ongoing intrigue as teams finalize their rosters for the 2026 season. This piece breaks down the top free agents still available, categorizing them to provide a comprehensive overview of the remaining market.
Several notable free agents – Japanese stars Tatsuya Imai and Kazuma Okamoto – have already agreed to contracts as we head into the 2026 season. However, with just over five weeks remaining before pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training, a significant number of quality players remain on the open market, leaving plenty of room for movement before camps open.
Let’s take a look at the top free agents still available, breaking them down into six key categories as teams finalize their offseason plans.
Four of the five players ranked highest in this free agent class by MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand remain unsigned. Bryce Tucker is considered the top prize, having posted at least a 4.0 WAR (FanGraphs) in five consecutive seasons, even while battling injuries in 2024 and 2025. The Toronto Blue Jays could be a prime destination for the outfielder. Both the New York Yankees and the New York Mets have reportedly shown interest in Tucker, but appear to be focusing more on Cody Bellinger, who presents a more affordable option and offers positional versatility; Bellinger can play all three outfield spots and first base.
Bo Bichette enjoyed a bounce-back season in 2025, hitting .311 with an .840 OPS and 18 home runs after a 2024 campaign hampered by injuries. The Blue Jays have been linked to him throughout the offseason, but their agreement with Okamoto could make a reunion less likely. The Boston Red Sox shouldn’t be ruled out for Bichette, though their pursuit may hinge on whether they re-sign Alex Bregman. Boston has reportedly made an “aggressive offer” to Bregman, who posted an .822 OPS in 495 plate appearances and was praised for his leadership during his first season with the Red Sox.
The significant contract awarded to Dylan Cease by the Blue Jays gave the starting pitcher market an early boost, but things remained relatively quiet until Tatsuya Imai reached an agreement with the Houston Astros.
Imai’s signing likely signals the end of Framber Valdez’s tenure in Houston. The durable left-hander ranks second in the majors since 2022 with 767.2 innings pitched. He boasts a solid adjusted ERA (ERA+) of 127 over that span. Valdez’s 3.66 ERA last year was his highest in a qualified season, but few starters induce more ground balls than the 32-year-old, who had a 59.4% ground ball rate in 2025 and a 62.5% rate over his eight-year career.
Merrill Kelly’s 734 innings pitched since the start of 2022 are just behind Valdez’s total as the third-highest in MLB. The 2025 season was largely forgettable for the 2023 National League Cy Young Award finalist. However, Kelly looked more like his old self during the final two months, posting a 3.32 ERA and 3.95 FIP in his last 11 starts. He allowed just eight home runs during that 65-inning stretch, a significant improvement from the 23 he surrendered in his first 127 episodes.
While Venezuelan pitcher Jesús Suárez rarely reaches 90 mph on the radar gun, he’s been one of the best pitchers in the game over the past two years, posting a 129 adjusted ERA over 308 innings. Armed with a six-pitch repertoire that induces a lot of soft contact, Suárez could be more appealing than fellow left-hander Valdez to some teams, given he is two years younger.
Just below those prominent position players is a group of free agents who could fill a need for any club.
J.T. Realmuto’s offensive production dipped below league average (OPS+ of 91) for the first time in a decade in 2025. His blocking and framing skills have declined in recent years, but the 34-year-old catcher, who has spent the last seven seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies, remains effective at throwing out runners.
Eugenio Suárez, also from Venezuela, is the best pure power hitter remaining on the market. He came off a season split between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Seattle Mariners where he hit 49 home runs, though 36 of those came before being traded to Seattle on July 31st. After the trade, Suárez hit just .189 with a .683 OPS and a 35.9% strikeout rate. Strikeouts have always been a part of his game, but Suárez has hit at least 30 home runs in six of the last seven non-shortened seasons.
Luis Arráez, another Venezuelan, is something of an anti-Suárez at the plate: plenty of contact, but with very little power. The three-time batting champion—and the only player to win a batting title with a different team each time—presents a very intriguing free agency case. No player makes more contact, but Arráez’s 16.7% hard-hit rate last season was the worst for a qualified player since 2022.
Harrison Bader was a surprise at the plate for the Phillies during the last two months of 2025, hitting .305/.361/.463. But his excellent defense in the outfield is his calling card, and he registered seven Outs Above Average (OAA) last year. A Gold Glove winner in 2021, Bader ranked third in OAA in the outfield over the last four seasons.
Both three-time Cy Young Award winners, Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer, showed last season they still have something left in the tank. Verlander, who will turn 43 on February 20th, posted a 3.85 ERA in 152 innings and 29 starts for the San Francisco Giants. Scherzer, 41, pitched just 85 regular season innings for the Blue Jays, as he was sidelined for nearly three months with right thumb inflammation. But he had a 3.60 ERA in his first 11 starts and finished the year starting Game 7 of the World Series against the Dodgers, allowing one run in 4.1 innings.
Paul Goldschmidt looked fantastic for the New York Yankees in the early months of 2025. He started June with a .338 average and an .889 OPS. But from there, the 38-year-old first baseman hit .226/.277/.333 in 302 plate appearances. He hit 10 home runs on the year and is 28 home runs shy of 400.
It appears to be Pittsburgh or bust for Andrew McCutchen at this stage of his decorated career. The Pirates legend has signed one-year contracts with the club in each of the last three offseasons. The 39-year-old veteran and active leader in games played (2,262) hit 13 home runs and had an .700 OPS in 135 games in 2025, while spending most of his time as a designated hitter.
There are some reliable veterans here. José Quintana and Ryan Littell each have an ERA better than 4.00 while throwing more than 300 innings since the start of 2024. Chris Bassitt finished last season with a 3.96 ERA and has surpassed 170 innings in each of the last four seasons.
There are a couple of wild cards here with Walker Buehler and Wade Montgomery. Buehler, 31, wasn’t far removed from being a frontline starter, but his 2025 with Boston was so bad he was released in August after posting a 5.45 ERA in 112.1 innings.
The last time we saw Montgomery, he posted a 6.23 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2024. He then missed all of last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in April. He should be able to return to the mound early in 2026 and will look to regain the form that made him a hero for the Rangers when they won the 2023 World Series.
Options are fairly scarce if you’re a team in need of an impact bullpen arm. Most of the top relievers on the market signed early in the offseason. Yennier Domínguez finished above the 90th percentile in both whiff rate and strikeout rate while throwing 62.2 innings split between the Orioles and the Blue Jays last year. Matt Junis and left-hander Andrew Coulombe both had ERAs below 3.00.
Michael Kopech was limited to just 11 innings with the Dodgers due to shoulder and right knee injuries. But the 29-year-old allowed just six hits (all singles) in 40 at-bats against him. Speaking of 40, Robert Robertson had a 4.08 ERA at age 40 with Texas in 2025. Next season will be his eighteenth in the majors.
