The Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers may have just concluded their 2025 campaigns, but most MLB teams have been in evaluation and planning mode for weeks, or even months, as they try to improve for 2026.
One of the most direct, if expensive, route to finding needed upgrades is the free-agent market, and this year, there are a few transformative bats to be found. It’s difficult to imagine where the top of the Blue Jays’ lineup would be without George Springer or the Dodgers’ group without Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman — and other clubs will be looking for that kind of impact.
That’ll be a near-impossible bar to clear, but there are some big names out there. Below are the best position players money can buy this off-season:
Kyle Tucker
Age in 2026: 29
Position: RF
2025 fWAR: 4.5
Outlook: Tucker is a complete all-around force in his prime who’s been extremely consistent on a year-to-year basis. Since 2021, he has produced between 4.2 and 4.9 fWAR in every season, with his home run total never exceeding 30 or dropping below 23.
The four-time all-star is a plus defender and base runner who marries his power with above-average contact rates and the ability to take walks at an impressive clip. The possible concern is that Tucker will cost hundreds of millions of dollars and has never produced something nearing an MVP-calibre season like other mega contract recipients Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
He’s shown flashes of finding another level at times, though. He only played in 78 games in an injury-marred 2024, but still managed 4.2 fWAR thanks to his stellar .289/.404/.585 line — good for a 179 wRC+. Tucker’s game is more complete than spectacular, and there may be times when he might not ‘feel’ like the kind of star he’ll be paid to be, but a peek under the hood is likely to show he’s continuing to produce impressive value for his team.
Kyle Schwarber
Age in 2026: 33
Position: DH
2025 fWAR: 4.9
Outlook: Schwarber is about to be 33, and his total lack of defensive or base-running value means he probably won’t be the most efficient dollar-per-WAR investment out there.
Still, for teams more interested in winning than payroll efficiency, he’s a pretty appealing prospect. Schwarber is coming off a career year where he hit an NL-best 56 home runs, and since he joined the Philadelphia Phillies in 2022, only Aaron Judge has topped his 187 round-trippers. He also tops the playoff home run chart during that time (14), and only two hitters have more post-season home runs than Schwarber all-time (Manny Ramirez and Jose Altuve).
The end of whatever contract Schwarber signs could get dicey, but he’s also a lineup changer of the highest order — and a Jim Thome-esque third act isn’t out of the question for the powerful left-handed hitter who has been durable in recent years, missing just 21 games in his last four seasons.
Bo Bichette
Age in 2026: 28
Position: SS with other infield possibilities in play
2025 fWAR: 3.8
Outlook: Bichette’s free agency could be extremely simple or awfully complicated. Following a World Series run, the Blue Jays may decide that keeping Bichette around — even at a potentially uncomfortable price point — is the obvious way forward. That could result in a contract that keeps him in Toronto for his entire career being signed not long after you read this.
If he reaches the market, he will be a fascinating case. Hitters with Bichette’s youth and year-to-year steadiness (outside of a mulligan 2024) are rarely available in free agency, and there’s no doubt he could boost the top of a playoff-calibre team’s lineup for an entire window of contention.
He’s also a player some teams will see as a second baseman or third baseman and want to pay accordingly, and he has suffered some notable lower-body injuries in recent years. Some clubs will probably rule him out early in the process, but that shouldn’t prevent a handsome contract from coming his way.
Pete Alonso
Age in 2026: 31
Position: 1B/DH
2025 fWAR: 3.6
Outlook: Just like with Schwarber, all the value here is the bat. He’ll spend more time in the field than the Philadelphia Phillies slugger, but he grades out poorly at a non-premium position, setting the bar high for his offensive production.
He cleared that bar handily in 2025 with his best season since 2022, with a 141 wRC+ and 38 home runs. Alonso is one of the most reliable sources of right-handed power in the game, having never hit fewer than 34 home runs in a full season, and his durability and consistency on that count make him an appealing addition for teams without 1B/DH logjams.
While Alonso’s market was surprisingly cold last off-season, his bounce-back 2025 should encourage more suitors this time around.
Cody Bellinger
Age in 2026: 30
Position: OF
2025 fWAR: 4.9
Outlook: Bellinger’s career has had an odd trajectory, but it seems to have stabilized in recent years and his 11.4 fWAR since 2023 ranks 31st among all position players.
It’s unfair to expect him to be a superstar at this point, but he’s still younger than most free agents and brings a rare combination of power, contact ability, and athleticism. His game isn’t altogether dissimilar from Tucker’s in recent years, with a little less patience, power, and juice on the bases.
No rational team would prefer Bellinger, but whoever misses out on the class’s top free agent could find a strong outfield corner solution for a far more reasonable price. His power comes more from consistently pulling fly balls than pure contact quality, so the team that signs the veteran should think carefully about how their ballpark treats left-handed hitters.
Alex Bregman
Age in 2026: 32
Position: 3B
2025 fWAR: 3.5
Outlook: Much like Bellinger, Bregman has gone from one of the most dominant players of the late 2010s to a guy who contributes in several ways without earning MVP consideration.
Bregman remains an elite defensive third baseman who avoids strikeouts and produces a home run total in the 20s if healthy. He missed some time in 2025, but he was excellent on a per-game basis and earned marks for his clubhouse impact.
The veteran may be more of an excellent starter than a true star at this point in his career, but he’s never posted a wRC+ below 114 or a fWAR total under 4.2 in any full season.
Eugenio Suárez
Age in 2026: 34
Position: 3B
2025 fWAR: 3.8
Outlook: Suárez is the oldest player on this list, one of the most strikeout-prone players in the majors, and his defensive metrics have been all over the place in recent years.
For all his warts, he’s been one of MLB’s most consistent sources of power in recent seasons, and seems to provide value for whatever team he’s on year after year. Since 2017, he’s produced between 3.5 and 4.5 fWAR in seven of nine seasons, with one of the exceptions being the COVID-19-shortened 2020 campaign.
In that time, he’s hit at least 30 home runs six times and reached the lofty heights of 49 twice, including last season. Suárez’s power stroke shows no signs of slowing down, either. He managed the hardest-hit ball of his career (113.8 mph) in 2025, and his average bat speed (72.3 mph) was exactly the same as it had been in 2023.
Suárez should be on the radar of any contending team that could use a power injection.
Josh Naylor
Age in 2026: 29
Position: 1B
2025 fWAR: 3.1
Outlook: Naylor does a lot of things well that you might not expect based on his hulking frame. He fields his position well, has well above-average contact ability, and can be a dangerous base stealer.
At the same time, he lacks some of the qualities you might expect from a middle-of-the-order first baseman. His raw power can be impressive, but he hits significantly more doubles than home runs, and his walk rate tends to be below-average, which is rare for a player with his capacity to hurt pitchers in the strike zone.
The total package is an odd one. His wRC+ has sat between 118 and 128 in each of the last four years, and he’s averaged 22 home runs per season during that time. Those are strong numbers, but not elite for a bat-first position.
Naylor is younger than the average free agent, and he’ll help whatever lineup he joins, but it’s hard for first basemen without elite power numbers to break the bank.
Munetaka Murakami
Age in 2026: 26
Position: 1B/3B
2025 stats (NBP): 69 games, .286/392/.659 with 24 home runs in 263 plate appearances.
Outlook: The shine has come off Murakami slightly since he produced 56 home runs and a 1.168 OPS in NPB at the age of 22, but he remains an intriguing power threat who was excellent when healthy last year.
There are questions about whether Murakami’s struggles to make consistent contact in Japan will worsen against the tougher pitching MLB has to offer, but there also aren’t a lot of humans walking the planet who can mash a ball like he can.
Murakami’s range of outcomes is significant, and his limited defensive potential puts a lot of pressure on his bat to stand out. It certainly has in Japan, and it will be fascinating to see if it translates in the majors.
Trent Grisham
Age in 2026: 29
Position: OF
2025 fWAR: 3.2
Outlook: There will be some valid skepticism about whether Grisham can replicate his breakout 2025 campaign in the years ahead, but he’s also younger than the average free agent and just hit 34 home runs with a 129 wRC+ and expected numbers better than his already-strong results.
Grisham’s defensive work in centre field didn’t grade out well in 2025, but it had been above-average in each of his other MLB seasons despite his suspect speed for the position. He may be a corner outfielder soon, which would take some shine off of him, but he’d still retain some defensive value in that case.
While there’s some risk associated with committing to Grisham, he has elite plate discipline, above-average power, and remains in his prime. That’s not the easiest package to find in free agency.
