The best month of MLB's regular season is here and in full swing. Sometime within the next couple of weeks, playoff races will be decided, and we aren't far from October baseball being played. As fun as that is, though, some teams have already begun looking ahead toward the offseason.
As much as MLB fans might not want to admit this fact, free agency is just a couple of months away. We aren't far off from some of the best players in the game testing the open market.
With that in mind, now is the most important time for these upcoming free agents to make one last stand. A strong finish could earn these free agents an additional year and/or some extra money in free agency. A disappointing conclusion could lead to less interest than once perceived.
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Kyle Schwarber, Philadelphia Phillies
Kyle Schwarber has been everything the Philadelphia Phillies could've hoped for and more since he signed a four-year, $79 million deal with the team ahead of the 2022 campaign. He's always had his shortcomings in the field and on the base paths, but he hit 38+ home runs in each of his first three seasons with the team. He was playing his best baseball throughout his time in a Phillies uniform, and somehow, he's peaking at age 32.
Schwarber is slashing .242/.369/.560 with 50 home runs and 124 RBI in 148 games played. He's played in every single game for Philadelphia, leads the majors in RBI, and is having one of the most prolific power-hitting seasons in Phillies history. Shohei Ohtani is likely going to win the MVP award, but Schwarber is probably going to be the runner-up, which is absurd as a DH who does little other than rake.
Schwarber has always been this kind of three-true-outcome player, but he's just getting better with age. His stock is at an all-time high ahead of free agency. I'm not sure how well his contract will age, but he couldn't be entering free agency at a better time.
Kyle Schwarber Stock: Up
Framber Valdez, Houston Astros
Framber Valdez is having another Framber Valdez-esque season for the Houston Astros. He has a 3.42 ERA in 28 starts and 176.1 innings of work while generating ground balls at an absurd 59.7 percent rate. He doesn't have the best stuff on the planet, but when he's at his best, he gets tons of ground balls and works deep into games, no matter the opponent.
Valdez is the best pitcher set to hit the open market and is 31 years old, so he should cash in, but one incident could drastically impact his stock. After giving up a Grand Slam, Valdez, in frustration, either intentionally crossed up his catcher, Cesar Salazar, or didn't care when he hit him with a sinker when Salazar was expecting something else. This one incident gave teams an insight into how rival clubs might perceive Valdez.
"Houston Astros ace Framber Valdez's stunt, in which he intentionally crossed up his own catcher or at the least simply didn't care that he hit him in the chest with his fastball, could cost Valdez millions in free agency. One scout said their organization already crossed Valdez off their list of free agent candidates after the incident," USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported.
Valdez is still going to make a lot of money, but if at least one organization has crossed him off their list, that isn't good. He's going to need a strong October to improve his stock.
Framber Valdez Stock: Down
Zac Gallen, Arizona Diamondbacks
Valdez was the headliner, but Arizona Diamondbacks ace Zac Gallen looked like a close second when looking at upcoming free agent starting pitchers entering the year. While Valdez has been his typical self, Gallen has had a season to forget, posting a 4.84 ERA in 30 starts and 174.2 innings of work. As poorly as things have gone for Gallen this season, he's slowly but surely improving his stock down the stretch.
In his seven starts since the trade deadline, Gallen has posted a 2.83 ERA across 47.2 innings of work. He's completed at least six innings in all but one of those starts, and has allowed three earned runs or fewer in all but one of those outings as well. Gallen is starting to look like the guy who received Cy Young votes in 2020, 2022 and 2023.
The odds of him getting the massive nine-figure deal he seemingly had a shot at before the year are likely shot, but Gallen could be earning more than just a prove-it deal that he seemed destined for in the first half of the year.
Zac Gallen Stock: Slightly up
Dylan Cease, San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres right-hander Dylan Cease had finished in the top four of the Cy Young balloting in two of his previous three seasons entering the 2025 campaign, but this year hasn't exactly gone as planned. Cease has made every start, as has become customary for the right-hander, but he has a 4.71 ERA, the ninth-worst among 64 qualified starting pitchers.
Gallen's overall numbers aren't great, but at least he's pitching well down the stretch. In Cease's last five starts, though, he has a 5.82 ERA and has only completed five innings twice. He takes the ball every fifth day and has tremendous strikeout stuff, but if even completing five innings is problematic, how much value can he really have?
Cease at his best can win a Cy Young, but Cease at his worst is impossible to trust. It'll be fascinating to see what kind of contract he'll get. What's known is that the deal won't be nearly as lucrative as expected entering the year.
Dylan Cease Stock: Down
Ranger Suarez, Philadelphia Phillies
It's easy to overlook Ranger Suarez knowing his Philadelphia Phillies rotation mates include Zack Wheeler and Cristopher Sanchez, but all the guy does, even without the best stuff in the world, is get outs. Suarez has been a reliable arm in the Phillies' rotation for a while now, and he was an All-Star in 2024, but he's taken a leap in his age-30 season and might be the best starter available.
Valdez is certainly more accomplished, but the character concerns are real. Suarez has arguably been better than Valdez, posting a 2.77 ERA in 23 starts and 143 innings of work, and he happens to have an outstanding postseason resume as well.
Not only is Suarez having his best overall season, but he's saving his best stretch for last, as the southpaw has a 0.88 ERA in his last five starts covering 30.2 innings. Three of these starts have featured teams currently occupying postseason spots, and three of these starts have featured Suarez striking out double digits.
Suarez is going to get paid handsomely, and deservingly so.
Ranger Suarez stock: Up
Pete Alonso, New York Mets
Pete Alonso had the worst season of his career in 2024, forcing him to sign a short-term, high-AAV deal with the New York Mets to try and recoup his value. He got off to a ridiculous start in April, posting a 1.132 OPS, looking like he was a lock to receive the massive long-term deal he was once seeking. His numbers since the start of May, though, are rather pedestrian.
Alonso is slashing .247/.306/.473 with 26 home runs and 86 RBI since the start of May in 117 games played. He's a terrific run producer and he's extremely durable, but the flaws in his game have been apparent. He's been incredibly hot-and-cold since April, isn't getting on base much, is striking out a lot, and is a poor defender at first base. Alonso has been worth just 0.3 fWAR in 79 games since June 13, highlighting just how underwhelming his play has been.
The market for a 30-year-old right-handed power-hitting first baseman is limited enough. For Alonso to have truly cashed in, he would've had to put up truly incredible numbers. He's had a better year than in 2024, but I'm not sure he's done enough to earn a long-term deal. His stock is certainly down from where it was earlier this year.
Pete Alonso Stock: Down
Kyle Tucker, Chicago Cubs
The first half of the year was everything Kyle Tucker could've envisioned after getting traded to the Chicago Cubs. He was an All-Star starter and likely would've been an MVP finalist had the season ended there. Unfortunately, the season didn't end there, and the crown jewel of the 2025 free agency class hasn't quite been the same in the second half.
Tucker has a .777 OPS since the start of the second half, a far cry from his .882 first-half mark. A hairline fracture in his hand did impact his play, clearly, and a hamstring injury has him on the IL currently, but Tucker still hasn't quite looked like a superstar in the second half.
With that being said, even with a slow-ish finish to his season, Tucker is the clear-cut best player available. He's only 28 years old and is a five-tool superstar. Nobody expected him to get Juan Soto money or anything close, but Tucker is still going to get the largest contract of any free agent, and by a decent margin.
A $500 million deal might not be in the cards because of his second half slump, but Tucker's stock isn't down too much ahead of the biggest winter of his life.