Spring training is fast approaching ahead of the 2025 Major League Baseball season, but there’s still plenty of good talent available in free agency.
Here are our 10 best remaining MLB free agents:
1. Alex Bregman, 3B
Age: 30 (3/30/1994)
2024 stats: .265/.315/.453, 26 HR, 3 SB, 4.1 bWAR (Baseball Reference) 4.1 fWAR (FanGraphs)
With Juan Soto, Corbin Burnes, Blake Snell, Max Fried, Roki Sasaki, and Willy Adames off the board, Bregman becomes the clear top free agent remaining this offseason.
Bregman — who turns 31 on March 30 — won two World Series championships with the Houston Astros. He was particularly elite in 2018-19, putting together an American League-best 8.9 bWAR (wins above replacement) in 2019 and a 7.9 bWAR in 2018. He finished top-five in AL MVP voting in both years (second place in 2019, fifth in 2018).
While he’s no longer *that* player, Bregman has still performed at a 4-plus WAR level in each of the past three seasons.
Offensively, he blends a rare ability to hit for power (at least 23 homers in each of the last three seasons; peaked at 41 homers in 2019) and not strike out much (a career 13.4 strikeout percentage; his 13.6 strikeout percentage in 2024 was ninth-best among qualified hitters).
Defensively, Bregman is a very good third baseman, and he won the first Gold Glove of his career in 2024 after being valued at 6 Defensive Runs Saved and 6 Outs Above Average.
Now, Bregman doesn’t come without red flags. He slugged .592 in 2019, but he’s topped out at .454 (2022) since (.453 in 2024). And in 2024, his walk rate plummeted to 6.9% after being at 11% or better in the previous six seasons (11.9% in his career). That led to a .315 on-base percentage, after being .350 or better in the previous seven seasons (.366 in his career).
So, the idea of giving Bregman a contract north of $150 million over many years certainly feels risky. It will be interesting to see where Bregman lands — the Astros, Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox, Detroit Tigers, and Toronto Blue Jays have been rumored potential destinations — and how the contract is structured. Over a short-term deal, he’d have plenty of suitors.
2. Pete Alonso, 1B
Age: 30 (12/7/1994)
2024 stats: .240/.329/.459, 34 HR, 3 SB, 2.6 bWAR, 2.1 fWAR
The $200 million hopes of Alonso always felt far-fetched due to the reality of his skillset. It’s just not hard to find first basemen that can hit (and at a devalued defensive position to begin with), and Alonso’s offense has declined over the last two years to simply really good instead of great.
On paper, Alonso looks like a 2-3 WAR player in the short-term with a murky long-term, or at least until there are signs his offense returns to 2019-2022 levels. And he’s a minus on the basepaths, with his offensive game all being about hitting the ball out of the ballpark.
The good news is Alonso is quite good at hitting the ball out of the ballpark, though he saw a dip in that department in 2024 as well. He led the majors in homers as a rookie with 53 in 2019, and he hit 37 homers in 2021, 40 in 2022, 46 in 2023, and 34 in 2024. His .459 slugging percentage in 2024 was easily his career-worst (he’s slugging .514 for his career).
Like Bregman, teams would feel far better about Alonso on a short-term deal. Maybe Alonso’s power returns to elite levels; maybe it’s simply very good.
3. Jack Flaherty, SP
Age: 29 (10/15/1995)
2024 stats: 162 IP (28 GS), 3.17 ERA, 3.48 FIP, 194 K, 3.1 bWAR, 3.2 fWAR
There might not be a free agent that helped their stock in 2024 more than Flaherty.
In 2018 and 2019, Flaherty was one of the better pitchers in the majors while with the St. Louis Cardinals. His 2019 performance — a 2.75 ERA over 196 1/3 innings pitched — led to him finishing fourth in NL Cy Young voting. In the years that followed, Flaherty battled health issues and inconsistencies on the mound, but he rebounded in a big way in 2024.
Flaherty put together a 3.17 ERA over 162 innings with the Detroit Tigers and the Los Angeles Dodgers (acquired in a trade ahead of the deadline) in 2024, and he started five games for the World Series champion Dodgers in the postseason. That success — to go with the success earlier in his career — should land him a wealthy contract this offseason.
Perhaps Flaherty and the Tigers consider a reunion after he had a 2.95 ERA with Detroit over 18 starts in 2024.
4. Nick Pivetta, SP
Age: 31 (2/14/1993)
2024 stats: 145 2/3 IP (26 GS), 4.14 ERA, 4.07 FIP, 172 K, 1.8 bWAR, 2.0 fWAR
The numbers don’t necessarily stand out, but Pivetta is a steady starting pitcher and every team is looking for those.
Over the past four seasons with the Red Sox, Pivetta threw at least 142 2/3 innings each time with an ERA in the low-to-mid 4s.
Pivetta helps his chances of success by missing bats. Of pitchers that threw at least 250 innings over 2023-24, Pivetta ranked fifth in strikeout percentage at 30.0.
5. Kenley Jansen, RP
Age: 37 (9/30/1987)
2024 stats: 54 2/3 IP, 3.29 ERA, 3.00 FIP, 27 Saves, 62 K, 1.3 bWAR, 1.4 fWAR
Not the Kenley Jansen of his dominant Dodgers days, but still a very good and efficient reliever.
Jansen has had an ERA no worse than 3.71 in each of his 15 seasons (career 2.57 ERA), and he’s been better than that in all of the past five seasons. His peripherals are annually strong thanks to efficient strikeout-to-walk rates and his ability to limit home runs due to his world-famous cutter.
At some point, Father Time will catch up to Jansen, but until we see evidence of that, we should assume he’s a good bet for solid production on a short-term deal. His closing experience will surely appeal to some teams, and he would especially be a great setup man for teams that have luxury.
6. David Robertson, RP
Age: 39 (4/9/1985)
2024 stats: 72 IP, 3.00 ERA, 2.65 FIP, 2 Saves, 99 K, 1.7 bWAR, 1.9 fWAR
Very similar to the Jansen situation: an older pitcher, but still looking quite effective in the back of the bullpen (and like Jansen, as a cutter-heavy right-hander).
Robertson has been one of the best relievers in baseball over the past three seasons. According to FanGraphs, Robertson ranked ninth among all relievers in WAR in 2024. Even ahead of Tanner Scott, who signed a four-year, $72 million deal with the Dodgers this offseason.
There’s undoubtedly plenty of risk that comes with a pitcher who turns 40 in April. But with that risk being known, it also drives down Robertson’s price. He’ll likely get a one-year deal in the $10-12 million. And if he pitches anywhere close to as well as he did over the past three seasons, he’ll be a bargain.
7. Clayton Kershaw, SP
Age: 36 (3/19/1988)
2024 stats: 30 IP, 4.50 ERA, 3.53 FIP, 24 K, -0.3 bWAR, 0.6 fWAR
Kershaw underwent knee and toe surgeries this offseason, and that’s after he underwent shoulder surgery last offseason. The hope is that he’s able to return around midseason in 2025, and after he only pitched in seven games in 2024.
None of that sounds encouraging. But Kershaw is also one of the best pitchers of all time, and he was still excellent in 2023 with a 2.46 ERA over 131 2/3 innings pitched.
At what will be a discounted price, Kershaw is an intriguing gamble to take for a team that can afford to wait (like, the Dodgers).
8. Andrew Heaney, SP
Age: 33 (6/5/1991)
2024 stats: 160 IP, 4.28 ERA, 4.04 FIP, 159 K, 0.8 bWAR, 2.2 fWAR
Heaney is a solid left-handed starter who can fill out the back of the rotation for a good team. And for a rebuilding team, he’s the kind of pitcher who could be flipped for a prospect at the trade deadline if he performs well in the first half of the season.
9. Jose Quintana, SP
Age: 36 (1/24/1989)
2024 stats: 170 1/3 IP, 3.75 ERA, 4.56 FIP, 135 K, 2.5 bWAR, 1.0 fWAR
The peripherals weren’t pretty in 2024, but Quintana found a way to get it done for the third straight year. Like Heaney, Quintana is a veteran southpaw who slots into the back of the rotation for a contender, or he could be closer to the front of the rotation for a rebuilding team and serve as a veteran presence for the young players to lean on.
10. Jose Iglesias, IF
Age: 35 (1/5/1990)
2024 stats: .337/.381/.448, 4 HR, 6 SB, 3.1 bWAR, 2.5 fWAR
Long known for his glove in the infield, Iglesias has made big strides with the bat and was excellent in that department in 2024.
Iglesias plays a plus third base and second base, and while he’s not the shortstop he used to be, he can play there if necessary as well. The defensive ability all over the infield, to go with a bat that should at least be decent (and maybe even great again), makes Iglesias an excellent utility man for any team.
