close
close

Apre-salomemanzo

Breaking: Beyond Headlines!

The 5 best outfielders available in free agency
aecifo

The 5 best outfielders available in free agency

The MLB free agency season is upon us. This comes with power rankings for every position in the game. One of the most available positions this winter is among the outfielders, where several players are expected to find a new home for 2025 and beyond. Here’s the best of the bunch.

Tyler O’Neill is coming off a year with the Boston Red Sox where, despite only playing in 113 games, he hit 31 home runs, establishing himself as one of the best power hitters in the league. Yet, at just 29 years old, O’Neill is poised to land a lucrative multi-year contract in free agency, where he can be a vital part of any roster he enters.

O’neill’s biggest problem is his ability to stay on the field, as he has only appeared in 100 games twice in his seven-year career. Without a doubt, when healthy, O’Neill poses a long-ball threat every time he steps to the dish, and there will be at least one team willing to roll the dice and hope that he remains in good health. He lands at number five on this list simply because of his blistering home run pace in 2024.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work at The Baseball Insiders Podcastsubscribe to The moonshotour weekly MLB newsletter, and join the Discord for exclusive information leading up to the MLB offseason.

Hit a switch Antoine Santander parting ways with the Baltimore Orioles doesn’t seem right, but it will likely become a reality due to the contract he is expected to receive this winter. After a career-high 44 homers and 102 RBIs, Santander has had the perfect season to have a career year, as he has now hit free agency in search of a deal that may prove too lucrative to the taste of the Orioles.

Any team in need of outfield, especially playoff-caliber ones, will try to land Santander if they miss Juan Soto. His ability to hit from both sides of the plate is highly sought after and, at just 30 years old, he will give many teams confidence that he will be productive for years to come. Unlike O’Neill before him, Santander has had no problem staying healthy in recent years and has eclipsed the 30-homer plateau twice during that span.

Jurickson Profar had a breakout season in 2024 and will now test free agency after slashing an impressive .280/.380/.459 with 24 HR and 85 RBI. Given his ability to play in the corner outfield or middle infield when needed, his versatility is a valuable trait that any baseball manager wants more of on his team. Truth be told, Profar’s breakout began in the second half of 2023, when he was acquired by San Diego, and continued from there, so his track record is now long enough to believe he’s figured it out something.

The biggest concern in signing Profar is that heading into the second half of 2023, it could be argued that he wasn’t the most efficient player, given his .238/.322/.386 slash 2012 to 2022. It looks like we just saw Profar at his absolute peak, which means teams will use that against him in negotiations as well, assuming 2024 is his ceiling, and we shouldn’t expect much more . Still, the numbers over the last season and a half speak for themselves, and it will be interesting to see what kind of deal he can get now.

Getting to the meat and potatoes of this list, Teoscar Hernández comes in at number two, finding himself a free agent once again. Hernandez had his most successful season since his breakout 2021 campaign, slashing .272/.339/.501 with 33 HR and 99 RBI, culminating with a World Series championship with the Los Angeles Dodgers this year.

Given that he’s only 32, it was not only surprising that he didn’t sign some sort of multi-year contract last year, but now, with money being rolled over to him over the time, he will look to sign a longer contract. My best prediction is that Hernandez will end up back with the Dodgers, who ultimately miss their shot at landing the number one player on this list.

Obviously, Juan Soto gets #1 here. He’s about to land probably the 2nd largest contract in baseball history, after Shohei Ohtani last winter. Soto’s demands are exorbitant, but it’s very doubtful he’ll top Ohtani’s deal, regardless of how many homers he hits and how old he is. Ohtani is a much better player, and Soto’s expectations of exceeding this deal are unrealistic.

This of course doesn’t mean his contract won’t exceed $600,000,000. Soto is one of the best players in baseball, a generational hitting talent, and he’s only 26 years old. Already a four-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger Award winner, Soto cut .288/.419/.569 in 2024 with 41 home runs and 109 RBIs. Considering he’s probably not even in his prime yet, he deserves the deal he’ll get. Don’t be surprised by the number of years Soto receives or the AAV. It may not be Ohtani’s money, but it will be an insane contract wherever he lands.