With the winter meetings set to kick off in Nashville on December 4th, many Major League teams are gearing up to add some fire power to their lineups. It seems like a bit of a down year for position player free agents, so we might see some trades in addition to signings this year. You can take a look at the top pitching values in free agency here.
"Cody Bellinger to the Pacific Northwest."#MLBNHotStove predicts a few Winter Meetings moves for the Seattle Mariners! 🔮 pic.twitter.com/YE0cppbKW7
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) November 27, 2023
The elite (and expensive) options
Shohei Ohtani’s free agent chase has been well documented. It’s worth noting that the Japanese star won’t pitch in 2024, so he should have a chance to play almost every day as a DH for his new team. Ohtani is sure to break the bank, so most teams simply have no chance to sign him.
Cody Bellinger had a renaissance year in 2023, rocking an .881 OPS in his first year with the Chicago Cubs. The 2019 NL MVP was able to return to stardom after 3 pedestrian years with the Dodgers from 2020-2022. Bellinger seems like he’s poised to cash in with a long term deal, as he’ll be just 28 for the start of the 2024 season.
Will cost some money, but could pay off in a big way
Jorge Soler somewhat quietly hit 36 home runs last year for the Marlins, with an OPS of .853. Soler has been a steady source of power for the last few years, and was an instrumental part of the Atlanta Braves’ 2021 World Series championship, taking home the MVP award. It remains to be seen how many years the 32-year old will receive on the market. For a contending team, adding Soler to the middle of their lineup would make them considerably more dangerous.
JD Martinez signed a 1-year deal with the Dodgers last offseason for $10, and he ended up paying off in a big way. The 36-year old slugged 33 home runs as an integral part of the middle of the Dodgers order. Martinez seems poised to receive another 1 or 2 year deal worth around the same amount of money, if not more. For a young team needing a veteran presence, they couldn’t do much better than Martinez.
Cheaper options that could be steals
Rhys Hoskins had a rough end to his tenure with the Phillies. After posting 5 straight years of an OPS over .800, the slugging first basemen tore his ACL and missed the entire 2023 season. With Bryce Harper’s permanent move to first base, the team decided to move on from the veteran. Coming off an injury presents some risk, but the 30-year old should be able to return to the middle of the lineup for a team willing to take the chance.
Tommy Pham was an integral part of the Arizona Diamondbacks run to the World Series, and seems poised to parlay that into a multi-year free agent deal. The 36-year old has played on 4 different teams in the last two years, and will likely jump at the chance to play for the same team for an entire season. His .720 OPS in the regular season won’t excite many, but we’ll see if his success in the playoffs helps his free agent case.