MLB Free Agents 2024-25: Which Hidden Gems Will Transform Their New Teams Overnight?

Sinker = 19 inches of run.
Sweeper= 21 inches of break.

Hitting is Impossible. pic.twitter.com/IDzp72WzUJ

12. Jack Flaherty, RHP

What it will take: A very, very convincing PowerPoint presentation, and a few million dollars.

Headlined by Juan Soto and a barrage of starting pitchers, the class will require teams to make a host of calculations about who has the most impact to offer.

13. Gleyber Torres, 2B

Why you want him: He’s clearly the most accomplished position player in the class not named Juan Soto.

What it will take: He’s a prime candidate for a six- or seven-year deal that lowers the luxury tax hit for a contender and guarantees him about 0 million.

Why you want him: The longtime New York Mets avatar (one of them, at least) presents a reversed Santander case. Alonso possesses elite power potential, and a history of reaching that power without whiffing too often, but his walk year did not make the best case for him maintaining that combination of abilities into his 30s. Still, 34 homers as a career-low total (in a non-pandemic season) is a pretty remarkable fact on the resume.

14. Christian Walker, 1B

What it will take: The 32-year-old outfielder will benefit from his big year on the big stage with the Dodgers, drawing at least three years and million despite an impending need to DH.

He’s a year older than the next guy on this list, but don’t be surprised if he winds up jumping him in defensive standing early in their contracts. Bregman is likely capable of competently manning shortstop or second base for stretches in addition to his usual third base.

15. Walker Buehler, RHP

What it will take: A one-year deal and reason to believe he might win another World Series.

What it will take: A deal that allows him room to prove his health and his value in some shape or form, whether that’s a one-year bubble contract or a longer-term deal involving an opt-out.

16. Shane Bieber, RHP

Why you want him: He’s Shane Bieber, and your faith in him might win you a significant discount on a Cy Young winner working his way back from Tommy John surgery.

Why you want him: Visuals will do. His fastball and his slider are terrifying pitches from the left side. After years in the wilderness of walking way too many, the 30-year-old Scott has found a somewhat reasonable level (though his post-trade excellence with San Diego memory holed a worrisome first-half walk rate with the Miami Marlins).

17. Teoscar Hernandez, OF

Another winter of MLB hot stove intrigue is upon us.

Why you want him: The ace the Dodgers played in World Series Game 5 looked more like the one they were holding way back in 2021. A slow return to form following a second Tommy John surgery is perhaps to be expected, and the ceiling for Buehler stacks up with the best of this list.

18. Nathan Eovaldi, RHP

What it will take: A one-year contract and a handshake deal to not pair him with Tommy Pham.

What it will take: Three years at more than million per year.

19. Yusei Kikuchi, LHP

Over the past five seasons, Burnes has the fourth-best ERA among starters and the second-most innings. Really, only one pitcher rivals him for the title of most productive pitcher in baseball (the Philadelphia Phillies’ Zack Wheeler).

What it will take: The 30-year-old right-hander is reaching the market a year older than Gerrit Cole and with a few more warning signs of decline. He won’t touch the nine-year, 4 million bar for long-term MLB veteran deals, but he could target an average annual value that tops Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s stretched-out deal with the Dodgers. Expect Burnes to seek million per year or more, which could take him toward the 0 mark over seven seasons.

20. Jeff Hoffman, RHP

What it will take: The biggest reliever contract of this winter, but probably no more than million.

What it will take: Age will keep him from snagging anything too long, but a multi-year deal exceeding his original million pact seems certain.

21. Tanner Scott, LHP

He has serious postseason bonafides, including a ring with the Washington Nationals in 2019, and has missed a grand total of 40 of his teams’ games in the last six regular seasons. With his prime still stretching out in front of him, Soto is as foolproof a franchise player as we’ve ever seen reach free agency.

What it will take: Agent Scott Boras will undoubtedly be looking to cash in on Alonso’s big name and the reputation he earned mostly prior to 2024. Almost anything is possible, but a five-year deal to maximize the total guarantee, even at lower annual rates, seems like the best route.

22. Clay Holmes, RHP

Adames has too much swing-and-miss in his game to expect more than the .251 batting average he tallied in 2024, but a 115 raw value+ (RV+) will go a long way for relatively young, steady performers who can play shortstop.

Why you want him: His swerving sinker might be the surest best of anything on offer in the relief market. Being a ground-ball pitcher comes with the pro of generally avoiding home runs and the con of some serious white-knuckle innings when bloops and bleeders turn into hits. That means the day-to-day experience of closer Clay Holmes is decidedly more stressful than the aggregate quantification of closer Clay Holmes, who logged 189.2 innings over the last three seasons with a 2.82 ERA.

23. Joc Pederson, DH

The stuff can be otherworldly, as demonstrated in a 19-strikeout perfect game and 8.0 perfect innings in back-to-back starts that flung him onto the wider world’s radar in 2022. It’s a fastball that has averaged 99 mph and touched 101. It’s a splitter that gets whiffs on more than half the swings batters take. But you’ll notice the hedging in that assessment – can be, has. Sasaki suffered seriously diminished stuff in 2024 amid arm issues that The Athletic reported as “shoulder fatigue,” which is among the more concerning pitcher diagnoses.

The plate-discipline god leads all qualified hitters with a .421 on-base percentage since his debut in 2018, and almost unbelievable display of hitting savvy from a young hitter. That’s the base of his .953 career OPS, which is fourth among qualified hitters in that span.

24. Tyler O’Neill, OF

What it will take: A shoulder surgery that might delay his start in 2025 could create incentive to take a short-term deal, or it could be a bargaining chip for a team looking to lock him up on a steal of a four-year deal for million or less.

He has never thrown more than 129.1 innings in a professional season, so whoever lands Sasaki will probably need to treat him with the kid gloves characteristic of top pitching prospects, not the all-in vigor that you might expect from Burnes or Fried. The reward for the initial work, though, could be incredible.

25. Blake Treinen, RHP

Why you want him: If you’ve ever thought about putting money under your mattress, here’s the pitcher for you. In the last five seasons, Eovaldi’s ERA marks range all the way from 3.63 to … 3.87. He’s a postseason hero and clubhouse favorite who peppers the zone (109 strike+) and goes deep into games (5.9 innings per start) entering his age-35 campaign.

What it will take: A two-year deal and a desktop bookmark, leading to scintillating April 2024 highlights, labeled “Patience.”

What it will take: Something historic. He could land something in the realm of 12 years and 0 million, which would likely overtake Shohei Ohtani’s heavily deferred deal for the richest in baseball by present-day value.
That’s exactly how we will be ranking the top 25 free agents available in Major League Baseball this offseason. It’s not about the total amount of money they will earn, but how much they might matter in the timeframe they are likely to play for their new teams.

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