MLB Free Agency Shake-Up: Which 4 Stars Took Qualifying Offers and How It Could Rock Yankees, Cubs, Tigers, and Brewers!

The landscape of the MLB free-agent scene shifted notably this week as four key players opted to remain with their current clubs, accepting the one-year, $22.025 million qualifying offer. This move, while narrowing the free-agent pool, brought a measure of clarity to the involved teams — the Yankees, Tigers, Cubs, and Brewers — who now can better chart their offseason course. The quartet — center fielder Trent Grisham, second baseman Gleyber Torres, left-hander Shota Imanaga, and right-hander Brandon Woodruff — each played pivotal roles in their teams’ 2025 postseason runs and will be eyeing similar success in 2026, with the added incentive of potential bigger contracts next year.

The decision to take a one-year deal instead of chasing a guaranteed multi-year contract sparks plenty of debate, especially with a looming lockout casting a shadow over next offseason. Now that the dust has settled on these choices, it’s high time we mull over what these signings mean for their teams’ rosters and how they could shape offseason strategies moving forward.

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The free-agent market got a little less crowded earlier this week as four players accepted the one-year, $22.025 million qualifying offer to stay put, in turn providing their incumbent teams with some roster clarity as the league-wide transactional activity picks up in the coming weeks. The quartet that said yes to the QO — Yankees center fielder Trent Grisham, Tigers second baseman Gleyber Torres, Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga and Brewers right-hander Brandon Woodruff — all contributed to teams that reached the postseason in 2025, and will have their sights set on a similar success with their squads in 2026, with the possible carrot of a larger contract next offseason.

The calculus behind each player’s decision to accept the lucrative one-year pact rather than seek more guaranteed money on the open market is compelling fodder for debate on its own, especially with a potential lockout looming next offseason. But with these decisions officially done and dusted, it’s time to turn the page and contemplate the ramifications of these players’ returns for their respective current rosters, and how they could impact their teams’ offseason plans.

What does keeping Trent Grisham mean for Yankees’ pursuit of Cody Bellinger?

A mostly irrelevant extra outfielder in his first year in the Bronx after coming over from San Diego in the Juan Soto blockbuster trade, Grisham exploded in impressive fashion in Year 2 as a Yankee, doubling his previous career-high with a whopping 34 home runs and posting a career-best .811 OPS as the New York’s primary center fielder in 2025. Alongside AL MVP Aaron Judge and fellow free-agent-to-be Cody Bellinger, Grisham helped form what was far-and-away the most productive outfield in the majors. But once the offseason arrived, Bellinger was considered more of a priority for the Yankees to retain compared to Grisham, who felt more likely to parlay his career year into a larger payday elsewhere. Keeping Bellinger reportedly remains an important goal for New York this winter even after Grisham’s decision, and sensibly so, considering how successful that outfield trio was in 2025. But with Grisham locked in first, additional questions now surface regarding the rest of New York’s position player group — and that’s true regardless of how the Bellinger pursuit shakes out.

If the Yankees are able to keep Bellinger, it stands to reason that we’ll see a similar lineup in 2026, with Giancarlo Stanton continuing to receive the bulk of the DH reps (when healthy) and ascendent slugger Ben Rice assuming the everyday job at first base with perhaps the occasional catching cameo.

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Valid questions would still remain regarding the quality of the rest of the infield — namely, the left side of it — but a Bellinger return would likely conclude New York’s offseason business addressing its position player group, with upgrades on the mound becoming more of the focus for the remainder of the winter. What to make of the next steps for former top prospect Jasson Domínguez and current top prospect Spencer Jones, who launched 19 homers in 67 Triple-A games to finish 2025 but has severe strikeout concerns, would also be intriguing subplots. But their immediate importance on the roster would be drastically lessened if the entire 2025 outfield remains in tow. For a team with annual World Series aspirations like New York, worrying about development is less important than putting the best possible team on the field.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 04: Cody Bellinger #35 of the New York Yankees celebrates his home run against the Tampa Bay Rays with teammate Jasson Dominguez #24 at Yankee Stadium on May 04, 2025 in New York City. The Rays defeated the Yankees 7-5. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) — Cody Bellinger (R) is a big free-agent domino who could influence the playing time of Jasson Domínguez. (Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

(Jim McIsaac via Getty Images)

However, if Bellinger finds a new home elsewhere — an entirely plausible outcome considering his wealth of potential suitors — the pressure on Grisham to replicate his breakout campaign would be considerably amplified, and Domínguez would certainly become much more relevant entering 2026. The switch-hitting Domínguez hit reasonably well from the left side (.768), but struggled right-handed and was troublingly poor defensively in left field. It’s possible both of those glaring weaknesses would improve with more regular reps — Domínguez is currently in his native Dominican Republic playing winter ball for Leones del Escogido — but there’s also a chance he ultimately profiles as more of a role player with a solid left-handed bat than a player who warrants an everyday job. That said, if Bellinger is gone — and barring any other outside outfield additions — Domínguez seems likely to arrive at spring training with the inside track on the starting left-field job, just as he did entering 2025 before his playing time was gradually and justifiably given away to Grisham and Bellinger.

Domínguez turns 23 in February, so it’s far too early to write him off as the impact player he was long projected to be, but a Bellinger exit would thrust Domínguez into a regular role without an obvious safety net, making him one of New York’s most compelling characters entering 2026. And if Domínguez flounders and Grisham is unable to repeat his standout showing, New York’s lineup may find itself in a far less formidable state in a hurry, even with an all-time great in Judge still anchoring the unit.

Committing to Gleyber Torres complicates Tigers’ lineup

Torres was terrific to start his Tigers tenure, posting an .823 OPS through the end of June as a much-needed veteran presence atop Detroit’s ultra-young lineup. It does not feel like an accident that the Tigers’ overall offense fell off hard as Torres’ production declined sharply in the second half, though it was revealed that Torres was playing through a hernia that clearly hampered his impact at the plate and required surgery in October. Evidently that injury and rehab process was not enough of a concern to dissuade Detroit from offering Torres the QO, and Torres’ acceptance locks him back in at the keystone and somewhere at or near the top of the lineup as a vital cog for Detroit entering 2026.

While trade speculation continues to swirl around ace Tarik Skubal as he enters the final year of his contract, Torres’ return quietly invites a closer look at a complicated Tigers position player group as Detroit gears up to pursue a third consecutive trip to the postseason. Even assuming Skubal stays put and factoring in Jack Flaherty’s return to the rotation after he picked up his $20 million player option for 2026, the Tigers — like most teams — could certainly stand to add more on the mound via free agency or trade. The lineup, however, features a fair amount of uncertainty regarding its optimal alignment, even with second base now spoken for with Torres’ return.

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Beyond Torres, four other hitters would appear to warrant regular at-bats without much discussion: catcher Dillon Dingler, designated hitter/right fielder Kerry Carpenter, left fielder Riley Greene and first baseman Spencer Torkelson. What Detroit needs to figure out is which other hitters on the roster are worthy of everyday at-bats if Detroit wants to succeed in upgrading an offense that was not good enough down the stretch and into October.

If Torres and Torkelson account for the right side of the infield, what does the left side look like? Does Colt Keith have the inside track on the everyday third base job, or would Detroit attempt another run at Alex Bregman in free agency after coming up short last offseason? Has Javier Báez — still owed $24 million each of the next two seasons — restored his stock enough to reclaim the starting shortstop job over 25-year-old Trey Sweeney, as he did in October? Where does that leave All-Star utilityman Zach McKinstry? And is there still room for the lefty mashing trio of Matt Vierling, Andy Ibáñez and Jahmai Jones?

While A.J. Hinch has proven his mastery of mixing and matching with his versatile position player group, it’s important for Detroit to identify more hitters who can shoulder everyday responsibility if its offense is to start resembling one capable of a deep postseason run. If none in the current group take the necessary leap in 2026, two candidates to do so could be on the way in the form of top prospects Kevin McGonigle and Max Clark. Both had brilliant seasons and finished the year in Double-A. Had Torres departed, it’s possible McGonigle — a shortstop by trade who has also spent time at second base and most recently third base in the Arizona Fall League — could be competing for a starting job in spring training. That seems less likely now, though not impossible. Clark, meanwhile, is worth monitoring as a potential upgrade over center field incumbent Parker Meadows at some point next summer.

Adding Shota Imanaga shouldn’t stop Cubs from looking to improve rotation, even with all eyes on Kyle Tucker

Imanaga took a winding road back to the Cubs’ rotation over the past few weeks, with Chicago first declining an existing option in Imanaga’s contract to keep him through the 2028 season for $57 million and Imanaga in turn declining a subsequent player option for one year, $15 million. With Chicago then extending the QO to Imanaga, it became more clear that the Cubs weren’t necessarily interested in moving on from Imanaga but rather retain him via a shorter commitment, striking the balance between valuing his present potential without investing heavily in what he might become as he enters his mid-30s.

Across his first two major-league seasons, two things have become extremely evident regarding Imanaga: the dude knows how to pitch, and the dude is going to give up home runs. Those two truths paint the picture of a valuable regular-season rotation member but one who might not be an ideal go-to choice to start a postseason game.

Imanaga is a cerebral left-hander who throws a boatload of strikes and limits traffic on the basepaths, but his relative lack of velocity and north-south style of pitching makes him troublingly susceptible to the long ball. His return now gives Chicago the option to run it back with the rotation it finished 2025 with, as Matthew Boyd, Jameson Taillon, Cade Horton and Colin Rea all remain under contract. It’s a unit built on filling up the strike zone, pitching to contact, and letting the elite defense behind them cook. Cubs starting pitchers ranked first in BB/9, 27th in K/9, and eighth in ERA, demonstrating that run prevention can be achieved sans strikeouts if you have the right defenders in place.

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That said, there’s an argument that Chicago should still be pursuing rotation upgrades even with Imanaga’s return — perhaps a pitcher or two with more whiff potential. Backfilling a bullpen with three key contributors (Brad Keller, Caleb Thielbar, Drew Pomeranz) possibly departing in free agency would seem to be more pressing.

Of course, the biggest question for Chicago this winter is simple: If the Cubs are willing to let Kyle Tucker walk, what is the pivot? It’s not quite the same situation as the Yankees with Juan Soto a year ago, but the Cubs will need to demonstrate a similar level of creativity to replicate Tucker’s WAR production. That doesn’t necessarily mean finding a right fielder to replace Tucker one-for-one, but it does mean adding more impact talent in other areas of the roster to put the team in a markedly better — or at least comparable — position to what it was a year ago. If the Cubs don’t, it’s going to be awfully difficult to envision picking Chicago in the NL Central considering how their rival’s roster 90 minutes north is shaping up. Speaking of …

Could bringing back SP Brandon Woodruff also keep Freddy Peralta off the trading block?

By far the longest-tenured Brewer with his time in Milwaukee dating back to being drafted in 2014, Woodruff’s run as the beloved frontman of the starting staff will continue for at least one more season. Woodruff’s return from shoulder surgery after missing all of 2024 was encouraging and strange, as he dominated as much as ever across 12 outings despite his velocity being nowhere near what it was at his peak. Add in a lat strain that put him back on the shelf for the end of September and the postseason, and it was an odd season to evaluate Woodruff as he rejoined a Brewers team that posted the best record in baseball before getting emphatically swept by the Dodgers in the NLCS.

Woodruff’s return to the Brewers’ rotation initially sparked speculation that fellow frontline arm Freddy Peralta could be more likely to be on the move via trade in a similar fashion to Corbin Burnes two years ago entering the final year of his contact. But recent reports suggest Milwaukee is inclined to keep the duo together atop the rotation as it pursues a fourth consecutive division title.

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As far as the rest of the rotation is concerned, veteran left-hander Jose Quintana — who covered 131 ⅔ innings across 24 starts in the regular season — is a free agent, but Milwaukee seems well-positioned to backfill his innings with an exciting trio of righties in the form of Jacob Misiorowski, Chad Patrick and Quinn Priester. Perhaps another Quintana-esque veteran arm could be worth pursuing as insurance for the uptick in workload for those younger arms — not to mention the durability concerns involving Woodruff — but Milwaukee would still seemingly be better served searching for offensive upgrades externally, particularly with how uninspiring its offensive output was in October. It’s not exactly obvious which positions would be ripe to level up in that regard (shortstop? Left field? First base if you don’t believe in Andrew Vaughn’s renaissance?), but expect the Brewers to be creative as always in finding ways to take this roster up another notch as they try to break through and reach the Fall Classic.