FOR THE second consecutive year, MLB’s class of free agents is headlined by one crowned jewel.
Juan Soto’s production through his age-25 season puts him in a cohort with players like Mickey Mantle, Mike Trout and Albert Pujols. For anyone who thought Shohei Ohtani’s record-breaking $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers signed last year would hold up, Soto and agent Scott Boras had other ideas. The generational hitter made history with a 15-year, $765 million deal with the New York Mets that sent shockwaves throughout the sport.
While Soto's historic contract is the headliner of the offseason and beyond, there’s a lot of intrigue in this year’s free agency class. There’s plenty of options for shoppers in tax brackets high and low, with starting pitching as usual in high demand.
In ranking the 50 best free agents available, factors like past recent production, age, health history and position scarcity were taken into consideration. And, as has become tradition, we’ll be making signing predictions for each player in our top 50, with each team meriting at least one mention even though it’s highly unlikely certain small-market teams will cash out the dough to swim in this part of the free agent pool.
Without further ado, let’s get to the list.
