The deadline to accept the qualifying offer has passed. Four players — Trent Grisham, Gleyber Torres, Brandon Woodruff, and Shota Imanaga — chose to accept the one-year, $22.025MM deal and remain with their current clubs. The remaining nine players rejected the deal. They are: Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker, Phillies DH Kyle Schwarber, Blue Jays infielder Bo Bichette, Astros lefty Framber Valdez, Padres righty Dylan Cease, Phillies lefty Ranger Suarez, Mets closer Edwin Diaz, Diamondbacks righty Zac Gallen, and Padres righty Michael King. All nine are now free agents.
There’s not much surprise in any of the nine players who rejected. Tucker, Schwarber, Bichette, Valdez, Cease, Suarez and Diaz were all locks. Gallen may have given some brief thought to accepting after a rough showing in 2025, but he finished strong and has a track record as a high-end starter who’s garnered multiple top-five finishes in NL Cy Young balloting. King was hobbled by nerve and knee injuries in an odd season but was dominant in 2023-24 and through the first two months of the current season. He was healthy late in the year and fanned three in his lone inning of postseason work. He’ll test the waters in search of a multi-year deal as well.
Now that this nonet has rejected qualifying offers, they’ll all be subject to draft compensation. Interested teams will need to surrender a draft pick (or multiple picks) and, in some cases, space from their bonus pool for international amateurs in order to sign any of this group. The extent of that draft compensation depends on the revenue-sharing and luxury tax status of the new team. MLBTR broke down which pick(s) each club would forfeit by signing a “qualified” free agent last month.
Similarly, the compensation for each player’s former club is dependent on revenue-sharing and luxury tax status — as well as the size of the contract signed by the player in question. MLBTR also ran through the compensation each team would receive if their qualified free agents turned down the offer and signed elsewhere.
22 mil. I think you can pay bills to play a game.
It’s an $11B business, not just a game.
Not sure what the point of this comment is. Baseball players are paid to play a game…baseball. Fry cooks at McDonalds work for a multi-billion dollar business as well but they are still just fry cooks.
Because the fry cooks aren’t one of a very very very small subset of humans on earth that can do that job, and generate that revenue.
There are PLENTY of billionaires and corporations who can take over writing the checks (they are similar to fry cooks that way). There are very few qualified professional-level baseballs athletes. They produce the unique product, but make a tiny fraction of the actual profit.
Chipper, your entire premise is off.
Baseball players are paid to work in the entertainment business, not to play a game. They are also extremely highly skilled. One of just 1200 that can work in that particular portion of the entertainment industry at any one time and one of maybe 60-70 in the world that can do their particular job at a similar skill level. Regardless of what you do, if you are one of the top 60-70 in a highly specialized field you are going to get paid and deservedly so.
Cooks at McDonalds restaurants are not extremely highly skilled, there are millions currently doing the job and tens of millions that have done the job successfully, and they work for a $1.5 million franchise not McDonalds itself.
Fry cooks don’t have their own rumors site.
Datashark,
Now I’m hoping someone starts FCTR.com.
I hear Zoe isn’t happy at Wendy’s and is looking to opt out and move to In and Out.
I heard Whattaburger, is offering her a nice deferral package that will pay well into her retirement
Last I heard 632 billionaires last I heard and I don’t believe a corporation can purchase an MLB team unless other owners approve it. Heck private equity is limited to 30 percent max per team.
You win the internet
Now I want a Dr Pepper milkshake!
This isn’t a game. It’s a very important major sports and financial sports league that provides quite a few jobs.
4 players accepting the offer may be a record?
I believe it is
3 accepts was the highest in 2016.
The total now is 18 of out 157 (11.5%) since the Q.O. was implemented in 2012.
I just wanna say that I accurately predicted 3 of the 4. Darn you gleyber
I in accurately predicted 3 out of 4 – thank you Gleyber!
I hope I’m wrong but this feels like a bad omen for the state of the market.
bad omen how?
Probably worried about the lockout next year and how it will affect their chances at getting a good deal this year
2026 CBA is looming.
If we were to set a salary cap. I would set it at 400MM
400 mill? Bro not even close. Take about 100 mill off of that. These small markets will NEVER sniff that.
Okay yeah.
300 million or 275 million.
160 floor 200 ceiling if normal year to year salary increases are to stay the same.
The min. pay for the 2026 is 780K. How many teams can stay under/above that?
Cashman came out and confirmed what I thought about George’s kids. They won’t spend like the old man. Cashman said in a interview in Vegas that the Yankees have a budget.
It is a question what they will approve. They may let Bellinger walk and go after Bregman for 3B. Cashman’s comments tells me Volpe, if healthy is going to remain SS.
The problem is they don’t have a SS on the roster that is above average. They may have to move one or more of Rice, Dominquez or Spencer Jones to balance out the roster and get the pieces they need.
Grisham, Rice and Stanton are such albatrosses on the roster when it comes to defensive deficiency. I didn’t realize how much Grisham dropped off until Rosenthal went over his defensive metrics.
Well I guess that means no Bellinger or Tucker now that the Yankees are going to dump 22 million on Grish.
I’m not a Yankees’ fan, but these things aren’t mutually exclusive.
Cody Bellinger and the defensive versatility he offers is still very possible. Kyle Tucker as a strict corner OF is far less likely now., especially in regards to his expected contract.
The Yankees have too many other needs and will be much wiser addressing those through free agency and trades, especially pitching.
I’m feeling pretty good thus far in this year’s FA contest. I had Josh Naylor returning to the Mariners and also picked 3 of the 4 players who accepted their QO’s. Ironically, the only one I missed on was Trent Grisham.
We had them both last year, we can this as well, even with the extra cash spent. I mean, we would have had to spend it on someone!
Can players who accepted their QOs still negotiate extensions or is there a waiting period?
A player can sign an extension.
A player can always sign an extension with any team they are currently on, regardless of the QO. Let’s take Torres. If the Tigers say “Gleyber, we’d love to go 5/100. You in?” He can say yes and even tear up the QO offer for this year and he plays ‘26-‘30 on the new deal.
Well the fundamentals are true but I dont think they can tear it up. Them accepting is putting pen to paper so any extension would be in addition to
Isn’t the QO kinda like the NFL’s franchise tag? They can give a new deal for football; I figured they could just do the same thing for baseball but I could be wrong there.
There’s no mandated moratorium on Extensions. Some franchises implement “team rules” like no negotiations during the season, etc. but all 4 of these “acceptors” can be Extended pronto.
When there is mutual interest and agreement on an extension that can happen literally at any point.
From a players’ perspective, the point of accepting the Q.O. is taking a big paycheck and buyong time to establish/rebuild long-term value. An extension *can* happen but it’s likely not going to until a few months into the new season at the earliest.
Great decision by Trent Grisham. Pocket that cash and then show them you mean business!
22 million for Trent is a waste of $
Probably, they can afford it. Good for him!
No qualifying offer required for Bellinger?
Not eligible as he was already offered one by the Cubs.
I am a little surprised Gallen didn’t accept the offer with the down season he had last year
The only surprise really – Teams are not going to be jumping on him unless he offers a deal to them
Isn’t a player accepting a QO, by definition, evidence of a bad decision by their club? Four is quite a few. Clear overpays in each case.
They aren’t the best at finance.
Not necessarily or inherently. That’s not to say that there never are or can’t be situations where it’s reasonable to say a club made a poor decision but ultimately that’s a matter of opinion case by case. If a club offers a qo it’s reasonable, all things being equal, to take that to mean that they were comfortable with the possibility of the player accepting. And ultimately it’s a one year deal for a player who’s track record supports entertaining the idea at all so it should not be crippling for any of these teams. Clubs can even trade these players at the deadline if they want to and find a deal they like.
People make bad decisions throughout their lives. Bet you made one. Bet everyone made one.
Ok duder. I literally said it’s possible to view any individual qo as a bad decision but it’s not inherently a bad outcome if a player accepts it. Guess one of your bad decisions was not learning to read at an adult level lol.
I don’t think you get my purpose
They also say, no such thing as a bad one year deal
They knew what extending the QO meant. So they made their decision. It means they were okay with that player coming back on a one year 22M deal. The Brewers declining the option then paying the bonus and then QO is the only questionable call. Arguably giving Grisham the QO in the first place
Not if they’re cool paying the player that money and/or he can put up something like 2.5 WAR the following season.
The red sox don’t like to give up draft picks, so I think they’re gonna try to sign alonso
Neither do I. But Dana Brown does.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Tampa make a big push for Alonso. He’s a Plant HS alum,Tampa native,loved by the community and Tampa made a big offer for Freeman a few years back, new ownership and stadium concerns are really the only drawback
Maybe, but Aranda isn’t a bad option there against RHP.
Padres getting some 4th round picks.
Unless you sign a player with a QO
They would still be getting some 4th round picks. They just would lose a 2nd and 5th if they signed a QO players unless it’s king or cease.
Does accepting the QO give these 4 guys any leverage for negotiating an extension?
Good question
On an individual basis, yes and no. Many, many factors… perhaps none more important than the team’s FO beliefs.
Some id suppose. If the team wants to lower the aav and keep the player long term. Then they could work out an extension.
So I am a bit confused on why the cubs did not pick up the option on Shota when it was 15 million and then opt not to pick up the second option the following year when the uptake in his contract kicked in? Did they not just lose another 7 million by him taking the QO?
it wasn’t a 1 year pick up, it was picking up 3 years and 45ish million. They are willing to spend a little bit more this year to get out from under the next 2.
The team opted out of 3/57. Then Shota opted out of 1/15, with another 1/15 player option. Then accepted 1/22 in the form of a QO. They spend 3 mil more this year but save the future. He makes 7 mil more than he would’ve opting in
Pretty sure the $15m option was a player option. The Cubs’ option was for more years with a higher AAV.
The $15 million was a player option that he turned down.
Please White Sox add some power!
I honestly think the White Sox will compete in 2027 and has a chance next season. But 2027 is a solid time.
Not in 2027. If Luis Roberts, Jr. rebounds, he’ll be out the door come the trade deadline. The White Sox have too many holes to plug and one year in ’26 isn’t enough time.
I’m sorry. I just realized my mistake. The White Sox were too bad in 2024 so they had lots of improvement, I just realized it.
Brewers SURPRISE! They’ll have to move salary to be able to afford him. Looks like Peralta goes on the block!!
We should learn from Milwaukee. Low payroll, high competitivness
@Astros Yes. Cleveland, too. The AntiMets.
I’m talking to Jim Crane in particlular.
Our next station is the 40 man deadline.
In little more than an hour
When I check in like 20 minutes, I will likely see a bunch of news
Welp, with the 4 accepting offers, I’m now 1/5 in the contest. Par for the course! At least I got Gleyber!
congrats. I decided not to enter because of the name. Maybe later.
What’s a nonet?
A nonet is a musical ensemble or composition written for nine performers. It’s less common than quartets or quintets but has a rich tradition in both classical and jazz settings.
Side note
Padres should be heavily involved in rule 5 trying out as many pitchers as they can or making minor trades to increase their pitching depth with guys on the verge of rule 5
Tyler Shaffler Cubs
Hayden Mullins Red Sox
Austin Peterson Guardians
Rj Petit Tigers
Joel Hurtado Angels
Cj Culpepper Twins
Andrew Morris Twins