2015-16 MLB Free Agents - MLB Trade RumorsBelow is our list of players who project to be eligible for free agency after the 2015 season.  Each player s 2016 age is in parentheses.If you see any errors or omissions, please contact us. To see who represents these players, check out MLBTR s Agency Database.Last updated 4-6-15CatchersAlex Avila (29)Chris Iannetta (33)John Jaso (32)George Kottaras (32)Jose Molina (41)Dioner Navarro (32)Brayan Pena (34)A.J. Pierzynski (39)Matt Wieters (30)First BasemenJeff Baker (35)Chris Davis (30)Edwin Encarnacion (33) $10MM club option with a $2MM buyoutGarrett Jones (35)Justin Morneau (35) $9MM mutual option with a $750K buyoutMike Napoli (34)Sean Rodriguez (31)Second BasemenJoaquin Arias (31)Mike Aviles (35)Jeff Baker (35)Gordon Beckham (29)Emilio Bonifacio (31)Asdrubal Cabrera (30)Stephen Drew (33)Kevin Frandsen (34)Maicer Izturis (35) $3MM club option with a $1MM buyoutHowie Kendrick (32)Daniel Murphy (31)Cliff Pennington (32)Sean Rodriguez (31)Skip Schumaker (36) $2.5MM club option with a $250K buyoutChase Utley (37) $15MM vesting option with a $2MM buyoutBen Zobrist (35)Third BasemenJoaquin Arias (31)Mike Aviles (35)Gordon Beckham (29)Willie Bloomquist (38)Kevin Frandsen (34)David Freese (33)Jonathan Herrera (31)Maicer Izturis (35) $3MM club option with a $1MM buyoutDon Kelly (36)Jeff Keppinger (36)Casey McGehee (32)Aramis Ramirez (38)Sean Rodriguez (31)Juan Uribe (37)ShortstopsJoaquin Arias (31)Mike Aviles (35)Willie Bloomquist (38)Asdrubal Cabrera (30)Ian Desmond (30)Stephen Drew (33)Alcides Escobar (29) $5.25MM club option with a $500K buyoutMaicer Izturis (35) $3MM club option with a $1MM buyoutCliff Pennington (32)Alexei Ramirez (34) $10MM club option with a $1MM buyoutSean Rodriguez (31)Jimmy Rollins (37)Brendan Ryan (34) $1MM player optionLeft FieldersJeff Baker (35)Willie Bloomquist (38)Yoenis Cespedes (30)Endy Chavez (38)Tyler Colvin (30)Rajai Davis (35)Alejandro De Aza (32)David DeJesus (36) $5MM club option with a $1MM buyoutChris Denorfia (35)Jonny Gomes (35) $3MM vesting/club optionAlex Gordon (32) $12.5MM player optionMatt Joyce (31)Don Kelly (36)Nate McLouth (34) $6.5MM club option with a $750K buyoutDavid Murphy (34) $7MM club option with a $500K buyoutGerardo Parra (29)Steve Pearce (33)Sean Rodriguez (31)Ryan Sweeney (31) $2.5MM club option with a $500K buyoutJustin Upton (28)Chris B. Young (32)Delmon Young (30)Center FieldersEndy Chavez (38)Rajai Davis (35)Alejandro De Aza (32)David DeJesus (36) $5MM club option with a $1MM buyoutDexter Fowler (30)Tony Gwynn Jr. (33)Austin Jackson (29)Nate McLouth (34) $6.5MM club option with a $750K buyoutGerardo Parra (29)Colby Rasmus (29)Cody Ross (35) $9.5MM club option with a $1MM buyoutSkip Schumaker (36) $2.5MM club option with a $500K buyoutGrady Sizemore (33)Denard Span (32)Drew Stubbs (31)Ryan Sweeney (31) $2.5MM club option with a $500K buyoutShane Victorino (35)Right FieldersNori Aoki (34) $5.5MM club option with a $700K buyoutJeff Baker (35)Jose Bautista (35) $14MM club option with a $1MM buyoutMarlon Byrd (38) $8MM vesting optionEndy Chavez (38)David DeJesus (36) $5MM club option with a $1MM buyoutChris Denorfia (35)Jason Heyward (26)Torii Hunter (40)Matt Joyce (31)Nate McLouth (34) $6.5MM club option with a $750K buyoutDavid Murphy (34) $7MM club option with a $500K buyoutGerardo Parra (29)Carlos Quentin (33)Ryan Raburn (35) $3MM club option with a $100K buyoutCody Ross (35) $9.5MM club option with a $1MM buyoutIchiro Suzuki (42)Ryan Sweeney (31) $2.5MM club option with a $500K buyoutJustin Upton (28)Will Venable (33)Shane Victorino (35)Chris B. Young (32)Designated HittersEdwin Encarnacion (33) $10MM club option with a $2MM buyoutJohn Jaso (32)Adam Lind (32)David Ortiz (40) $10MM club optionCarlos Quentin (33)Delmon Young (30)Starting PitchersBrett Anderson (28)Brandon Beachy (29) club optionErik Bedard (36)Chad Billingsley (31)Clay Buchholz (31) $13MM club option with a $245K buyoutMark Buehrle (37)A.J. Burnett (39)Trevor Cahill (28) $13MM club option with a $300K buyoutChris Capuano (37)Jhoulys Chacin (28)Wei-Yin Chen (30)Bartolo Colon (43)Johnny Cueto (30)Ross Detwiler (30)R.A. Dickey (41) $12MM club option with a $1MM buyoutMarco Estrada (32)Doug Fister (32)Gavin Floyd (33)Yovani Gallardo (30)Jaime Garcia (29) $11.5MM club option with a $500K buyoutZack Greinke (32) can opt out of remaining three years/$71MMJeremy Guthrie (37) $10MM mutual option with a $3.2MM buyoutJ.A. Happ (33)Aaron Harang (38)Dan Haren (35)Tim Hudson (40)Hisashi Iwakuma (35)Scott Kazmir (32)Kyle Kendrick (31)Ian Kennedy (31)John Lackey (37)Mat Latos (28)Mike Leake (28)Cliff Lee (37) $27.5MM club/vesting option with a $12.5MM buyoutTim Lincecum (32)Kyle Lohse (37)Corey Luebke (31) $7.5MM club option with a $1.75MM buyoutJustin Masterson (31)Brandon Morrow (31)Bud Norris (31)Mike Pelfrey (32)David Price (30)Ricky Romero (31) $13.1MM club option with a $600K buyoutJeff Samardzija (31)Alfredo Simon (35)Ryan Vogelsong (38)Jerome Williams (34)Chris Young (37)Jordan Zimmermann (30)ClosersJoaquin Benoit (38) $8MM club option with a $1.5MM buyoutCasey Janssen (34) $7MM mutual option with a $1.5MM buyoutJoe Nathan (41) $10MM club option with a $1MM buyoutJonathan Papelbon (35) $13MM vesting optionBobby Parnell (31)Fernando Rodney (39)Right-Handed RelieversScott Atchison (40) $1MM club option with a $100K buyoutGrant Balfour (38)Jonathan Broxton (32) $9MM club option with a $1MM buyoutSantiago Casilla (35) club/vesting option with a $1MM buyoutJoba Chamberlain (30)Tyler Clippard (31)Neftali Feliz (28)Jason Frasor (38) $2MM mutual option with a $550K buyoutKyuji Fujikawa (35) Club optionJuan Gutierrez (32)David Hernandez (31)Tommy Hunter (29)Jim Johnson (33)Shawn Kelley (32)Brandon League (33) $7.5MM vesting optionEdward Mujica (32)Darren O Day (33)Joel Peralta (40) $2.5MM club option (no buyout)Sergio Santos (32)Kevin Slowey (32)Joakim Soria (32)Tim Stauffer (34)Chad Qualls (37) $3.25MM club option with a $250K buyoutRyan Webb (30)Brad Ziegler (36) $5.5MM club option with a $1MM buyoutLeft-Handed RelieversJeremy Affeldt (37)Antonio Bastardo (30)Joe Beimel (39)Jerry Blevins (32)Craig Breslow (35)Neal Cotts (36)Randy Choate (40)Ross Detwiler (30)Scott Downs (40)Brian Duensing (33)J.P. Howell (33) $6.25MM club option with a $250K buyoutSean Marshall (33)Paul Maholm (34)Eric O Flaherty (31)Josh Outman (31)Manny Parra (33)Oliver Perez (34)James Russell (30)Tony Sipp (32)Matt Thornton (39)Wesley Wright (31)Cot s Baseball Contracts was used extensively in the creation of this post. ARONF 9 months ago I don t see many 9-figure contracts on this list, except maybe Justin Upton and David Price if they have good years. Desmond as well I guess. The other elite players are either too old (Bautista, Beltre) or have too much of their value in defense (Heyward, Gordon). It will be interesting to see what Heyward and Gordon get good test of teams use of defensive stats. Metsfan93 9 months ago Heyward is young enough to score 100+ MM if he wants to go that long. I d say the bigger issue there is not wanting to make this his final big pay day. godzillacub 4 months ago While that logic is correct, it overlooks the inclusion of an opt-out close or the old have his cake and eat it too scenario. LazerTown 9 months ago There are a ton of players that could get 9 figures, or come close.Heyward, Upton, Gordon, Latos, Samardzija, Zimmerman, PriceHeyward and Upton should get paid big just because they will still be so young, that a 7 year deal is pretty easy for them. Taylor Hope 9 months ago Latos is extremely underrated, in my opinion. I m curious to see the contract he receives. LazerTown 9 months ago He isn t a dominant ace, but I could see him getting a pretty sizeable contract, just because he is so young. Since he will only be 28, as long as he stays healthy next year I don t really think 85MM/5 would be that crazy. Douglas Rau 9 months ago At the rarity of finding a 28 year old out on the free agent market these days? Upton might be able to sweet talk his way into a 10 year deal especially if he has a good 2015. I wouldn t doubt it. Cano got one and he was 31 at the time. Metsfan93 9 months ago Better than Lajoie, Collins, Morgan, Hornsby, Jackie Robinson, and Gehringer? That s news to me Honestly, Cano might not end up being one of the five best second basemen since 1980- as of right now Whitaker, Sandberg, Biggio, Alomar and Utley all have better careers and second basemen tend to fall of a cliff early, so Cano needs to make up ground quickly.. Matt Peters 7 months ago Based purely on numbers Cano is on his way to becoming the best second baseman of all time. Including intangibles, and that is not clear. too early to tell Metsfan93 7 months ago He has no chance of having a better career than Nap Lajoie, Joe Morgan, Rogers Hornsby, or Eddie Collins. By no chance of course I mean about a .0001% chance, but my point stands. Toni8 2 months ago Thought Ty Cobb was a 2B man IF so, he d be #1 on everyones list except yours ha ha Douglas Rau 6 months ago What intangibles are you talking about? He s not known to be a great clubhouse leader. He IS known to occasionally lose focus in the field and he was pulled from games during his time with the Yankees for not always giving 100%. GOOREOS 4 months ago A little early for that conversation Sandberg and Alomar might have something to say about that. Brett Lange 4 months ago uh, Rogers Hornsby won 2 triple crowns and hit .424 a different season yeah Benjamin Markham 4 months ago lol, Cano is great and all, should go in the hall, but he can t touch Hornsby at this point unless he has a Bondsian second prime. You should check out his fangraphs page sometime. Mets2016 9 months ago the fact that Daniel Murphy could be the 3rd best offensive option on the FA shows that teams are locking up young talent Metsfan93 9 months ago Daniel Murphy is not a better offensive option than many of the players listed. I d take Encarnacion, Napoli, Chris Davis, Beltre, Desmond, Cespedes, Gordon, Upton, Bautista, Byrd and, should he hit the market, Ortiz. Mets2016 9 months ago Chris Davis the drug abuser already then. Encarnacion the DL machine ,Napoli the hip age wonder. Bautista will be missing 50 games unlike Murph every year.Justin Upton is right ahead of Murph in terms of stock. You think Marlon Byrd at 38 is better than a 31 year old Daniel Murphy? Ortiz value is to Red Sox. Murphy can hit and in today s league that is very valuable. Fred Wilpon is that you? Metsfan93 9 months ago wRC+, 2013-2014:Davis: 135Encarnacion: 147Napoli: 126Bautista: 145Upton: 132Byrd: 124Ortiz: 142Murphy: 110and, for referenceGordon: 113Beltre: 137Cespedes: 106Desmond: 110Also:Juan Uribe: 115Howie Kendrick: 115Dexter Fowler: 115Jason Heyward: 115So, to recap, by wRC+, at the very least a reputable offensive statistic, Murphy has been better the last two seasons than only Yoenis Cespedes, but Cespedes was very, very good in 2012 and has been better since being traded, so that could change by next offseason. You didn t say he was the third most valuable hitter available. Playing time matters, but when they play, all of these players except possibly Cespedes, are betters or equals to Daniel Murphy offensively, and Murphy s statistics even receive a wRC+ boost via Citi Field s pitcher friendly tendencies. Murphy simply isn t a very good hitter. He s above average, or good , but he isn t anything special. Jason Heyward, Jose Bautista, Adrian Beltre, Edwin Encarnacion, Justin Upton, Mike Napoli, and David Ortiz all blow him out of the water. If you want to specify that Daniel Murphy is arguably one of the five best reasonably healthy, reasonably aged, reasonably decent hitters out there, you might have a case, even if I d take Upton, Gordon, Heyward, Beltre, Bautista and Desmond in a heartbeat, you might have a small case. Mets2016 9 months ago Heyward with a .263 BA vs Murph who has a career .291 and you think .263 blows away a .291 BA. All the players you mention above except for Heyward play in hitters paradise. Bautista has a club option so I didn t count him. Ortiz won t go anywhere so he isn t a FA. Napoli will be 34 they year most players decline. Encarnacion has a club option so like Bautista if he is any good that option will be picked up. Beltre has a vesting option so he might not be a FA plus he will be 37. Davis is a good hitter but with the uppers he was taking he also had an advantage to recover quicker.Upton has a higher ceiling than Murph but he also is a strikeout machine. His stats show he shows up every other year. He has a MVP type season or a dud. Murph is consistent every year. I can t believe you think a career .291 hitter is a bad hitter meanwhile if he was playing in Fenway his BA would be higher slapping it off the wall since his strength is to opposite field. The two players I put ahead of Murph by the way was Davis and Upton Metsfan93 9 months ago wRC+ is park-adjusted. I even mentioned how it accounts for Citi Field, to an extent. I never said he s bad. He s above average. He s simply not a top-3 offensive option for next year s free agent class. Upton s an MVP or dud? .289/.369/.529, .280/.355/.430, .263/.354/.464, .273/.348/.495. Those are Upton s batting lines since 11. Murphy? .320/.364/.448 in 2011. Worse. .291/.332/.403 in 2012. Worse. .286/.319/.415 in 2013. Worse. .295/.337/.411 in 2014. Worse. He s literally been worse than Upton each of the last four years, and was worse in Murph s other full season, 2009, as well. In the five seasons they ve both been full time players Daniel Murphy has been a worse hitter all five seasons. Upton is a very good, very young, very healthy offensive option who is much more consistently good with the bat than you re crediting him for.For what it s worth, I don t care about batting average as a singular offensive statistic, which is why I think Jason Heyward is a better hitter. He has more power and draws more walks making an overall better hitter. Also, Upton and Heyward play in the same offensive environment, so I m not sure what All the players you mention above except for Heyward play in hitters paradise means Taylor Hope 6 months ago Stop relying on batting average as your measuring stick. By that logic, Murphy is a better than Giancarlo Stanton. Mets2016 6 months ago you went out of your way to see me but in all honesty I rather pay Murphy 7 million for a year vs Stanton 325 contract even with Stanton being a better player.I rather Vlad instead of Giancarlo. You think Heyward should get paid based off his defense so I guess Lagares should get 20 million based off of his defense and playing 3 defense positions for his team. Taylor Hope 6 months ago When did I ever say he should get paid based on his defense? He is an all around better player, offensively and defensively. He makes a much bigger impact And no, I did not go out of my way. I was on the page, reading the comments. Jo JoAnne 4 months ago Weren t you throwing the Wilpon name around in earlier comments and you make a comment stating that you would take Murphy over Stanton because of the contract? Don t get me wrong I value Murphy higher than quite a few of the other players above because of his versatility on the field. But, your argument was about hitting and is akin to comparing Brett http://www.chiwhitesoxedge.com/jose-abreu-white-sox-jersey Gardner (one of my fav s) to Matt Kemp Toni8 2 months ago I ll take a .235 hitter like Dozier ..way more than a .290 hitter that hits mostly singles. SLG% is much more important than BAA so is position in a batting order Mets2016 2 months ago you do realize Murphy has been batting 2nd his whole career until this year. I love how you imply Dozier is a free agent in 2016 Donald Lufkin 3 months ago Zimmermann already turned down a 100mill contract that was Nats friendly. He s going to free agency confident he ll get a deal above that mark.I m guessing if he has a year similar to last (16-7 2.95 ERA is my optimistic, albeit reasonable estimate) he ll be looking for something like a 6yr $125mill or better contract. maybe even 6yr $140mill or a 7th year. he only turns 29 this year. sheckyshabaz 2 weeks ago I think Cueto and Zimmerman will also get 9 figures along with Heyward, Price, Upton Terhoo 2 weeks ago Chris Davis could well hit 9 figures same with Yoenis Cespedes cannon arm and good bat. Johnny Cueto will definitely go 9 figures, Doug Fister will be close. Than obviously Price and Upton will get them because of their age and talent warrant. deucebaseman 9 months ago I actually think the class is stacked for SP and OF. You have Alex Gordon (32), and then Justin Upton and Jason Heyward in their 20s! Then the SP has Price, Zimmerman, Medlen, Latos, Samardzija, Porcello, Luebke. I like that there are a lot of SP options so the Cubs can get Price then while the others go for the other options. hozie007 9 months ago Fister could fit well with the Cubs too .although, I ve heard he wants to be with a west coast team. shawlawoff 2 months ago I want Mike Leake to be on the Cubs. If not him, then Samardzija again.I don t know about relievers. Scott Berlin 9 months ago I m sure he ll sign a multi year contract. This is for 2016 free agents not FA for this upcoming offseason. CT 9 months ago I have to believe Heyward and JUpton will get 100MM+ contracts. I hope this season hasn t hurt the Braves ability to sign one long term. Metsfan93 9 months ago Fister, Kennedy, Latos, Medlen, Porcello, Price, Samardzija, Zimmermann is a good class of starting pitchers, particularly because Medlen will be difficult to value on an extension, and I m highly doubting Price, Shark and Zimm are extended since Price will be so young and want to test free agency this close, I would imagine, Shark is currently with a low-budget team, and Zimmermann signed away his two arbitration seasons via extension already. Zimmermann and Price could top 100 MM, and Latos should approach that with a good, healthy 2015 considering his youth. If Kennedy and Fister have similarly productive 2015 seasons they should command some money, too. Metsfan93 9 months ago Two good catchers here in Wieters and Avila, some stars in Desmond, Gordon, Upton, Heyward, and a slew of good above average starters like Kendrick, Utley, Alexei, Jackson, Fowler, Cespedes, Davis, Napoli, Morneau, Freese, and Uribe. I doubt Bautista and Beltre hit the open market, but I suppose we ll see. Also isn t Cliff Lee potentially on this list too? Metsfan93 9 months ago In my opinion, yeah. I think Desmond is baseball s third best shortstop and a legitimate 4-win player. Cespedes has name value, but performance-wise, he s a bit overhyped. He s not far behind Desmond, but they sit on opposite sides of my star line. Milli 2 months ago I agree. Have to look at the position as well. Finding a shortstop who can hit the way Desmond can is a lot harder than finding a left fielder who can hit 15-20 homers Jeff_Todd_MLBTR 9 months ago Cruz will be a free agent after this season. This list covers players who are currently set to become free agents after 2015. Metsfan93 9 months ago Alex Gordon? If you re going to list Heyward .. Also, if Latos, why not Zimmermann? Bob Bunker 9 months ago Doug Fister, Jordan Zimmerman, Ian Desmond, Scott Kazmir, Shark, Porcello, Medlen, and Ian Kennedy have all had at least one great year over the last two years. Brian Baker 9 months ago For Heyward s sake, I hope sabermetrics don t help solve this defensive WAR issue. Once they realize he s getting 3 fly balls a game it could cost him million$ Mike1L 9 months ago Pity A-Rod and Howard aren t on there. Imagine the bidding wars we could watch. Douglas Rau 9 months ago Judging by the Beltran signing, I m gonna go out on a (short) limb and say this will be the time the Yankees finally get Utley . Butch Crassidy 9 months ago Would like the Cubs to pursue Martin this offseason, but after seeing Wieters will be a FA after the 2015 season, I ve flipped on that view, especially since I believe Martin will be interested in a 3-yr offer, at least. S710b 9 months ago Shouldn t Jimmy Rollins be on the list? He has an option that vested for 2015 (unless he s expected to start the season on the DL, which is unlikely) then will be a free agent after that. Karkat 9 months ago Reds should definitely explore locking up Latos and Leake this offseason if they can get a good price. I mean, they shouldn t do that, because that would be good for Cincy. Jeff_Todd_MLBTR 9 months ago Cueto has an option for next year, so he is still on the 2015 list (for now). josebatista89 9 months ago Plenty of players the Mets could sign to improve the big question is are the Mets going to sign some of these players. House of David 9 months ago I dont see Melky Cabera. colby rasmus on this list..isnt Lester a FA as well? Nuxall 9 months ago Didn t see Johnny Cuetos name on the starters list I believe he is a free agent. Joe 9 months ago This could potentially be a good free agent class, depending on how many big extensions get signed. Several players could land $100+ million, depending on how they play. I could see Matt Wieters, Chris Davis, Edwin Encarnacion (if his option is declined), Ian Desmond, Yoenis Cespedes, Alex Gordon (if his option in declined), Justin Upton, Jason Heyward, Doug Fister, Ian Kennedy, Mat Latos, Mike Leake, Kris Medlen, Bud Norris, Rick Porcello, David Price, Jeff Samardzija, Jordan Zimmermann, Tyler Clippard, Neftali Feliz, Tommy Hunter, Antonio Bastardo, Jerry Blevins, Eric O Flaherty, James Russell, and Jonny Venters all getting at least 5 year contracts worth anywhere from $25 million for the relievers to $150 million for guys like Heyward, Zimmermann, Desmond, and Latos. hozie007 9 months ago I see a long list of starting pitchers that will likely be whittled down by the Spring with extensions but only 2 or 3 of them look like 1 s or 2 s in a rotation .the rest appear to be good but not great.Maybe 2015 season will cause that to change. I expect Porcello, Price, Leake and Zimmerman to have good seasons next year as they seem to be front runners to top value contracts. Nathan Walter 9 months ago Medlen may be one of the better pitchers on this list we just didn t see him because of his TJ surgery this year. Destry 8 months ago A lot of good loogys on the market for 2016. Neftali Feliz could get a big payday too if can maintain his late season increased velocity through 2015. He will only be 28. Fister, Latos, Medlen, Shark, Zimmerman, Price and most likely Cueto will headline a strong SP class. soxaddictpa 6 months ago Nobody is chatting up Cueto? Man he s a horse, and he ll get 9 figures. If he has a year like 2012 or 2013? He ll get great money. Mike Goldthwaite 6 months ago Pretty sorry list if you ask me ..older players whose best days are behind them. This bodes well for teams like the Yankees who are building their farm system amazingly fast and getting younger at all levels. Destry 3 months ago The Yankees are in pretty bad shape. Good thing money is no object for them or else they would be in a tailspin with all of those franchise crippling contracts they have on the books. Sabean Wannabe 6 months ago I believe Cliff Lee should be on the list. He has a club/vesting option, but could become an FA. José Carlos 4 months ago Now you should include Craig Breslow to your left-handed reliever s list Exclusive Articles Sign up to receive an exclusive weekly article by MLBTR owner Tim Dierkes. Email Address MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com