Welcome again to High of the Order, the place each Tuesday and Friday I’ll be beginning your baseball day with some information, notes, and ideas concerning the recreation we love.
Tight playoff races, milestone and award chases, and waiting for the offseason — these are the issues I like about September baseball. One of many first choices to be made after the World Sequence is figuring out who will obtain qualifying affords, which at the moment tasks to be valued at $21.2 million.
As a fast reminder earlier than we proceed, the qualifying supply is ready at a value of the imply common annual worth of the 125 highest-AAV gamers within the league. As soon as it’s supplied to a participant, he has 10 days to determine whether or not to just accept or decline the supply. If the participant accepts, he’s locked into 2025 at that wage, although he can all the time negotiate a contract extension that will override the qualifying supply. If the participant declines and indicators with a brand new workforce, his new workforce will forfeit at the least one 2025 draft choose, and his previous workforce will obtain precisely one ’25 draft choose.
With lower than three weeks left within the common season, let’s run by which pending free brokers may very well be getting qualifying affords come November.
Locks to Obtain Qualifying Affords
These choices are all simple. Juan Soto, Corbin Burnes, Alex Bregman, Max Fried, Willy Adames, Pete Alonso, Anthony Santander, Jurickson Profar, Teoscar Hernández, and Sean Manaea (as soon as he workouts his choose out) are all having seasons someplace between robust and elite. They’re all positive to reject the supply in favor of longer-term offers.
More likely to Obtain, Believable to Settle for
Paul Goldschmidt is a tricky act to comply with, however Christian Walker has accomplished effectively since taking on for him after the Diamondbacks traded Goldschmidt to the Cardinals in December 2018. Walker has been particularly nice the final three years, with 10.9 WAR, a 122 wRC+, and glorious protection at first base. He’s not spectacular, however he’s excellent, and if the Diamondbacks are positive with working a document payroll once more, they’d be clever to maintain him round.
Walker’s obtained one large disadvantage, although: his age. Subsequent yr can be his age-34 season, and whereas he’d definitely prefer to earn a multi-year deal in free company, the qualifying supply may tamp down his market to the purpose that accepting it might web him extra money in 2025. He additionally may not wish to danger rejecting it, hanging out on the open marketplace for months, after which having to signal a prove-it deal. He’s a core member of a workforce that went to the World Sequence final yr, is sort of definitely going to return to the playoffs once more this season, and is constructed to contend subsequent yr, too. Moreover, he appears snug within the desert. For all of those causes, he’s in all probability the participant most certainly to return to his workforce on a qualifying supply.
More likely to Obtain, More likely to Reject
Tyler O’Neill has popped 30 dwelling runs in his finest and healthiest season since 2021, along with his wRC+ only one level away from tying that profession yr. On the floor, that makes him look like a slam dunk to obtain the qualifying supply, and a slam dunk to reject it. He’s getting into his age-30 season, and coming off his robust efficiency this yr, he might look to get a three- or four-year deal on the open market. The one factor that provides me pause, although, is O’Neill’s harm historical past and the way which may affect groups’ willingness to supply him a multi-year deal price a mean annual worth of roughly $20 million. Understanding this, if the Purple Sox give O’Neill the qualifying supply, he might determine it’s in his finest curiosity to just accept it. In the meantime, Boston may not wish to pay him $22.1 million subsequent yr, as an alternative opting to make use of that cash to bolster different areas of its roster. I nonetheless assume the Purple Sox will prolong him a qualifying supply, and that he’ll flip it down, nevertheless it’s not a positive factor.
There’s an argument to be made that Michael Wacha is having the very best season of his profession; it’s undoubtedly his healthiest since 2017. Offered he avoids harm the remainder of the best way, he’ll eschew his $16 million participant choice in favor of hitting the open market as soon as once more, leaving the Royals with a tricky resolution. On the one hand, this model of Wacha is price $22.1 million; on the opposite, the harm considerations don’t simply go away simply because he’s been largely wholesome this yr. As unlikely as Wacha can be to just accept, the Royals may also desire to remove any likelihood that he’d accomplish that and as an alternative allocate that cash to elongate their lineup. Having a rotation anchored by Cole Ragans and Seth Lugo would make shedding Wacha a neater tablet to swallow.
Complete Toss-Ups
If Ha-Seong Kim had reached free company earlier than this season as an alternative of after it, he in all probability would have earned a deal of at the least $100 million following his 4.3 WAR, 110 wRC+ marketing campaign in 2023. However proper shoulder irritation might hold him on the sidelines for the remainder of the season, and his run values as a hitter, fielder, and baserunner have all gone down significantly in 2024. That mentioned, even on this down yr, he’s put up 2.6 WAR and remains to be solely 28; that’s in all probability price $22.1 million. Nonetheless, contemplating the Padres have a glut of infielders already, they might not wish to give Kim the choice to just accept a qualifying supply.
Luis Severino is having his healthiest season since 2018, when he put up 5.4 WAR throughout 191 1/3 innings, made the All-Star workforce, and obtained Cy Younger votes because the ace of the Yankees. However he’s a very totally different pitcher now than he was then. His velocity remains to be there, however he not has the swing-and-miss stuff to anchor a rotation. Even with the Mets anticipated to lose two different starters to free company, I don’t assume they’d wish to pay him the wage of a no. 2 starter when, at this level, he profiles extra like a no. 3 or 4.
There could also be no starter within the league extra enigmatic than Nick Pivetta. The stuff has all the time been nice, however the command has been … much less so. I’m of the opinion that he’d do surprisingly effectively on the open market, and in my head I’m evaluating him to Yusei Kikuchi, who obtained three years and $36 million from the Blue Jays coming off a equally uneven (and possibly worse) few years. However the Purple Sox have already got Brayan Bello, Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, and Lucas Giolito (assuming he recovers effectively from inside brace surgical procedure) locked into subsequent yr’s rotation, and so they might make investments the $22.1 million elsewhere.
Unlikely to Obtain
For different groups, I’d say that it might be a no brainer to increase Shane Bieber a qualifying supply, however $22.1 million is some huge cash for the Guardians. If Bieber had been to just accept it, he might characterize 20% or extra of their payroll for 2025, and he may not be out there till the second half of the season anyway after present process Tommy John surgical procedure in April. Contemplating his observe document and the way effectively he pitched in his first couple begins of the season, a multi-year deal at a decrease common annual worth — with the money backloaded fairly closely — ought to be straightforward for Bieber to safe.
There aren’t any pending free agent relievers with the pedigree of Josh Hader, who was an apparent qualifying supply recipient and rejector final offseason. Clay Holmes began his season pitching like he’d find yourself receiving one, however he’s misplaced his nearer job and has in all probability worn out his welcome in New York, frankly. On the opposite facet of the coin is Jeff Hoffman, who’s been nothing wanting glorious for 2 seasons in Philadelphia. However he’s getting into his age-32 season and doesn’t have practically the observe document of different relievers who’ve obtained qualifying affords previously. I’d be shocked if he will get one.
Ineligible to Obtain
As a reminder, gamers who’ve appeared for a number of groups in the identical season are ineligible to be tendered a qualifying supply. That eliminates Kikuchi and Jack Flaherty. Additionally ineligible are gamers who’ve obtained one previously, in order that guidelines out Joc Pederson, Max Scherzer, Nathan Eovaldi (assuming he declines his participant choice), Cody Bellinger (ditto), and, ought to he choose out, Gerrit Cole.
