Five MLB free agents who could have qualifying offer issues
MLB free agents are free to sign with any team, but some with qualifying offers attached are finding it hard to find a willing taker.
When Major League Baseball instituted the qualifying offer in the 2012-13 offseason, the thought was the league needed a way to ensure balance by attaching value to outgoing free agents. The old system had been broken, allowing wealthier teams to game the rules and acquire would-be free agents for the sake of spinning them into draft picks after the season.
The qualifying offer system made things a bit more difficult. It attached high-level draft picks to any would-be free agent extended a qualifying offer, but also in turn assured that if said player agreed to the offer, he would be paid on average with the top 125 salaries in the game for one year. If a player declined it, he could then sign anywhere, but with the caveat that the signing team would forfeit their highest draft pick for said player, with the exception of those teams with a protected pick.
Major League Baseball teams set a single-year record over the winter by handing out 20 qualifying offers to would-be free agents. This winter also saw the first time in history that a player accepted the offer, with Colby Rasmus, Matt Weiters, and Brett Anderson all taking the one-year guarantee. Meanwhile, Marco Estrada negotiated a two-year deal with the Toronto Blue Jays in lieu of accepting the offer.
That left 16 players who declined the offer, valued at $15.8 million, and chose instead to explore free agency in the 2015-16 hot stove market. Of those 16, eight have signed (one, Hisashi Iwakuma with the team that offered him the QO).
That still leaves half of the field looking for a new home with about a month to go before Spring Training. In some cases, the qualifying offer is likely to play a big part in the signing of said player, as teams are showing a hesitancy to dish out big-dollar deals and lose a draft pick for mid-level free agents.
With that in mind, we’re taking a look at five free agents that could be weighed down by the qualifying offer.
Next: Ian Desmond - Shortstop