Seven non-tendered players to keep an eye on this offseason

Every year, MLB's non-tender deadline sees clubs allow some of their players who remain under team control to test the open market early, whether it be due to an increasing price tag in arbitration or a need for additional space on the club's 40-man roster.

Previous seasons have seen a number of high-profile players wind up non-tendered, players like Kyle Schwarber by the Chicago Cubs in 2020 and Cody Bellinger by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2022.

Incidentally Bellinger reemerged as the NL's 2023 Comeback Player of the Year with the Chicago Cubs the following season, and Schwarber was the runner up in this years NL MVP race to Shohei Ohtani.

While players of that caliber who reach free agency by way of a non-tender are extremely rare, plenty of others find themselves cut loose early by their clubs only to make an impact elsewhere down the line.

That could be as a regular in the lineup or rotation or simply as a solid contributor off the bench or out of the bullpen.

Let's take a look at seven players who hit free agency following last week's non-tender deadline and could be worth keeping an eye on throughout the coming offseason.

Back in 2023, Garcia bashed 39 homers while hitting .245/.328/.508 with plus defense in right field.

That alone made him one of the shrewdest DFA pickups in recent memory, but it didn't set the stage for him to emerge as a core piece like many expected at the time.

While he was a focal point of the offense that helped the Rangers capture their first World Series title that season, the slugging right fielder's bat has cratered over the past two seasons.

His 2024 numbers took a major step back (.224/.284/.400), and in 2025 he slashed just .227/.271/.394.

Garcia still makes thunderous contact when he connects with the ball, averaging 92.1 mph off the bat and logging a stout 46.7% hard-hit rate.

However, his chase rate on pitches off the plate has spiked from 29.5% in 2023 to 35.1% in 2025.

His overall contact rate in '25 sat about five percentage points shy of league-average, and his 79.5% contact rate on pitches within the zone is six percentage points shy of average.

Swinging through a bit more than one of every five offerings within the strike zone is nothing new for Garcia, but that flaw has been compounded by the manner in which he has increasingly expanded the percentage of pitches at which he's willing to swing since that peak season.

Who can forget Garcia's walk off home run in game 1 of the 2023 World Series.

The youngest player on this list by more than a year, Morel arguably has the highest upside of any player on this list but significant flaws that could hold him back from getting a starting job somewhere.

The youngster's big league career started with a bang in 2022, and over his first two seasons with the Cubs Morel slashed .241/.311/.471 with 42 homers in 220 games and a wRC+ of 115.

While he struck out at a massive 31.6% clip and was a below-average fielder everywhere he played on the diamond, his impressive power and ability to take walks were enough to make him a well above average hitter.

By far the most established hitter on this list, Lowe has a Gold Glove, a Silver Slugger award, and a World Series ring on his mantle for his work with the Rangers from 2021-24.

Over that four-year stretch, he slashed a strong .274/.359/.432 with 78 home runs and a 124 wRC+.

That's the performance of a quality regular and left him good for around three WAR per season at first base.

Lowe was shipped from Texas to D.C. last offseason, however, and his time with the Nationals left much to be desired. However he seemed to turn it around in 35 games with the Red Sox

Tauchman is the oldest player on the list, and returns after also being listed in last year's edition of this post.

Non-tendered by the Cubs last winter, Tauchman stayed in Chicago by way of a deal with the White Sox and generally made good on his contract with the South Siders, hitting .263/.356/.400 (115 wRC+) across 385 plate appearances.

Tauchman may not still be the capable center fielder defender he was earlier in his career, but a teams would be hard pressed to find a player who can more reliably provide on-base ability.

Urias stands out among this group as being the most valuable defender of the bunch. Bleday and Tauchman are both restricted to the outfield and profile poorly in center, while Lowe is a first base-only defender.

Morel has experience at valuable positions like center field and third base, but has graded out terribly at them by defensive metrics and profiles best as a DH.

Urias, by contrast, is a Gold Glove winner at third base who has substantial experience at both second base and shortstop as well.

His +5 Outs Above Average around the infield this year ranked in the 88th percentile among all fielders.

Bleday has quite the pedigree behind him, as he was drafted fourth overall by the Marlins back in 2019.

A consensus top-50 prospect in the game prior to his MLB debut in 2022, Bleday struggled for the Marlins and A's across his first two seasons in the majors before enjoying what looked to be a breakout 2024 campaign.

That year, he slashed .243/.327/.437 (120 wRC+), cut his strikeout rate to just 19.5% while maintaining a solid 10.4% walk rate, and showed enough pop in his bat to hit 20 homers and a whopping 43 doubles.

He was a below average but not disastrous defender in center field, and that in combination with his strong offensive production allowed him to put together a 3.2 fWAR season.

Heim, who'll turn 31 next June, broke out with a .258/.317/.438 line (107 wRC+) and career-best 18 home runs back in '23.

For a catcher who already boasted some of the strongest defensive grades in the game, that offensive performance was enough to earn him a spot on the 2023 All-Star team.

In 924 plate appearances since, Heim's bat has evaporated. He's hitting .217/.269/.334 since Opening Day 2024.