NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 19: Trent Grisham #12 of the New York Yankees runs the bases after his second inning two run home run against the Los Angeles Angels at Yankee Stadium on June 19, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Four of MLB’s most intriguing free agents will wait another year to reach the open market. Trent Grisham, Gleyber Torres, Shota Imanaga, and Brandon Woodruff accepted qualifying offers, returning to their old ballclubs on one-year deals.
The qualifying offer is worth $22.05 million in 2026. Nine of the 13 players who received the qualifying offer rejected it and are now free agents. However, the teams that sign them will have to sacrifice draft pick compensation in the next amateur draft, and in some cases, they’ll lose international bonus pool money, too.
It’s rare for players to accept a qualifying offer, so to have four in the same offseason is unprecedented. The size of the salary means only the upper crust of free agents typically receive it, and most of them would rather try for multiyear deals instead. However, the draft pick compensation can be a dragging anchor on mid-tier players.
In this case, four such players chose to just play out the 2026 season on the qualifying offer instead. Each player can only receive the qualifying offer once in their careers, so there’s no risk of getting it again next year. Players also can’t get it if they’ve been traded during the previous season.
Grisham was an afterthought in the outfield mix for the New York Yankees heading into the 2025 campaign, but he quickly earned the starting center field job. He’s known as a strong defensive outfielder, having previously won two Gold Gloves, and he doubled his previous career high with 34 home runs. Overall, he hit .235/.348/.464 with a 125 OPS+, indicating that his offense was 25% better than the league average. However, it was 91, 84, and 81 in his three prior seasons. MLB Trade Rumors projected him to sign a four-year, $66 million contract as a free agent. He’ll try to establish an even stronger market for himself by compiling a second consecutive productive year.
Torres is also a former Yankee, but he spent last year as the second baseman for the Detroit Tigers after signing a one-year, $15 million deal with them as a free agent a year ago. He posted a 108 OPS+ and made the All-Star team, but faded down the stretch. He hit a robust .281/.387/.425 in the first half and a paltry .223/.320/.339 in the second half. Nevertheless, the qualifying offer represents a raise of more than $7 million dollars.
Most players need to accrue six years of MLB service time to reach free agency, but Imanaga has only spent two years with the Chicago Cubs. After an eight-year career in Japan, he signed a deal that guaranteed him $23 million over two years with mutual options, which both parties declined this offseason. The left-hander returns to Chicago anyway on the qualifying offer after recording a 3.73 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 25 starts.
A few years ago, Woodruff looked like he would sign an enormous contract as a rare ace who reached free agency, but a poorly-timed shoulder injury knocked him out of action before he reached the market. The Milwaukee Brewers re-signed him on a two-year, $17.5 million deal, knowing he would miss the entire 2024 season. He didn’t return until July 6, 2025, making 12 starts with a 3.20 ERA and 0.91 WHIP. He’ll attempt to prove he can stay healthy for a full season under the qualifying offer.