MLB Trade Rumors and 2025-2026 Free Agent News

The countdown for Munetaka Murakami’s move to the Majors is officially underway. All 30 Major League clubs will be informed on Friday that Murakami has been posted by the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, with his official negotiating window set to open on Saturday morning at 8:00 a.m. ET.
Murakami will have until 5:00 p.m. ET on Dec. 22 to agree to a deal with a big league team. If he is still unsigned at that point, his posting window will expire and he will return to the Swallows. More >
Thirteen players were extended the qualifying offer on Thursday. Those free agents now have a choice in front of them: Accept the QO and return to their 2025 club on a one-year deal worth $22.025 million, or reject the QO and see what’s out there in free agency. The deadline to make that decision is Nov. 18 at 4 p.m. ET.
For most free agents, the answer is an easy no. Since this system was implemented in 2012, only 14 players who received the QO have accepted it. And the top free agents who received a QO this year — Kyle Tucker, Bo Bichette, Kyle Schwarber, Framber Valdez, etc. — certainly have their sights set on something much larger than a one-year contract this offseason.
Brandon Woodruff, Brewers: If we were still living in 2022, Woodruff would gladly pass on the QO. But since the beginning of 2023, he has pitched a total of 131 2/3 innings. That includes missing the entire 2024 campaign due to right shoulder surgery. He is still effective when on the mound, including a 3.20 ERA with an 83-to-14 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 64 2/3 innings this season. But Woodruff, who didn’t debut this year until July 6, saw his season end on Sept. 21 due to a right lat strain. The right-hander may be open to accepting the QO given his worrisome injury history.
Gleyber Torres, Tigers: Torres is the first Tigers player to receive the qualifying offer since 2014. It comes after a season in which he earned his third All-Star selection with a strong first half. In the second half, however, he produced a .659 OPS and saw his strikeout rate jump from 12.8% to 20.4%. A sports hernia on Torres’ right side dogged him for much of the second half, so that slump does come with an asterisk. But Torres has been only a slightly-above-league-average bat over the past two seasons (105 OPS+), and his middle-infield defense has never earned high marks. The QO would represent a decent raise from the one-year, $15 million pact he signed with Detroit.
Trent Grisham: Yankees: Grisham’s 2025 numbers are definitely worth more than a one-year deal. The problem is that they just came out of nowhere, so it’s hard to predict what the 29-year-old will do moving forward. From 2022-24, Grisham hit a total of 39 homers and batted .191 with a .651 OPS. He was a defense-first center fielder who could pop a few homers. This season, he sure did pop a few homers — 34 of them, doubling his previous single-season career high. His OPS went up to .812. Is this who he is now? Considering his lack of a track record and the decline of his Gold Glove-level defense in center, Grisham may be best off taking the QO instead of searching for a multiyear commitment that may never materialize.
The Angels are in the midst of an 11-year playoff drought with no clear end in sight, so they need to be open to moves that better align their roster with a longer-term competitive outlook. With this in mind, the Halos’ two leading home run hitters from this past season could be available. According to MLB Network insider Jon Paul Morosi, the Angels will listen to offers for outfielders Jo Adell and Taylor Ward this offseason.
Ward, who finished 2025 with 36 homers, 103 RBIs and a .792 OPS, seems to be the more likely of the two to be dealt, considering he is five years older and has one fewer year of team control remaining. The 31-year-old will be eligible for free agency after 2026.
Adell, meanwhile, is controllable for two more seasons. A former top prospect, Adell struggled over 2020-24 (.649 OPS) but finally broke out in ’25, producing 37 homers, 98 RBIs and a .778 OPS. However, he was miscast as the Angels’ starting center fielder, ranking last in MLB with -8 Outs Above Average at the position. He’s best suited for a corner spot, and the Angels could open one up for him by dealing Ward.
Per Morosi, the Phillies are a potential trade partner as they look to shore up their corner-outfield situation. Free agent Max Kepler had a .691 OPS while serving as Philadelphia’s regular left fielder in 2025, while right fielder Nick Castellanos posted a .694 OPS. Castellanos has one year left on the five-year, $100 million deal he signed with the Phillies prior to the 2022 season, but Nick Gelb of The Athletic reported in October that the club is expected to either trade or release the veteran outfielder this offseason.
By the time the Cubs reached the National League Division Series, manager Craig Counsell’s options for his rotation were limited. Rookie Cade Horton was out with an injury, Shota Imanaga was struggling and a few other arms were in the bullpen. Veterans Matthew Boyd and Jameson Taillon were asked to do the heavy lifting.
Monday saw a flurry of players officially opt out of their contracts for next season and reach free agency. That group includes Alex Bregman, Cody Bellinger, Pete Alonso, Edwin Díaz and Robert Suarez. A handful of other players also entered the free-agent pool by declining their half of a mutual option for 2026, including Michael King, Brandon Woodruff and Lucas Giolito. On Tuesday, the Cubs declined to pick up their 2026-28 club option for Shota Imanaga, who subsequently declined his player option and has become a free agent.
Shane Bieber on Wednesday opted in with the Blue Jays for $16 million in 2026, an unexpected move that immediately boosts a Blue Jays rotation in need. Bieber joined the Tigers’ Jack Flaherty and the Orioles’ Tyler O’Neill among the players who didn’t opt out. Jorge Polanco, meanwhile, declined his $6 million player option with the Mariners on Wednesday.
Sunday is the day after the end of the World Series. That means it’s the beginning of the offseason and, for 137 players, the start of free agency. Following a five-day quiet period, those free agents can negotiate and sign with any club beginning on Thursday at 5 p.m. ET.