Spring training is underway and the very best free agents are now off the board. There is still an entire 2025 season to play, though it’s never too early to look ahead to next offseason, and we’ve already previewed the top of next winter’s free-agent class. Things can and will change between now and next offseason, of course. Players will sign extensions, they’ll raise their stock with great years and hurt it with down years, etc. It happens every season.
Also, several players will use opt-out clauses or decline player options to enter free agency after the season. Opt-out clauses, player options, same difference. They’re functionally the same thing. The player walks away from an already agreed-to sum of money to go into free agency. With that in mind, here are 10 players with opt-out/player option decisions looming after the season, ranked in order of how likely it is they will use their contractual right to become a free agent.
Contract status: Can opt out of final two years and $38 million
Díaz is owed $18.5 million in both 2026 and 2027, and his contract includes a $17.25 million club option for 2028. That club option comes with a $1 million buyout. Díaz bounced back nicely last year from his lost 2023 season, though he wasn’t as good as he was in 2022, and that’s fine. That was one of the best seasons by a reliever ever. With his 31st birthday coming up next month, Díaz remains one of the game’s premier strikeout pitchers, and a high-leverage dominator. He may not want to opt out and leave the Mets after the season, but if he repeats his 2024 performance in 2025, Díaz would be in position to leverage his opt out into an extension, and tack an extra guaranteed year or two on top of what he’s already owed. At the end of the day, that’s what the opt out is. Leverage.
Contract status: Can opt out of final year and $15 million
The pitching bargain of the 2023-24 offseason, Lugo was the AL Cy Young runner-up last season, and he need not perform that well again this season to justify opting out of his contract. One year and $15 million is late-career Alex Cobb/Charlie Morton money. Lugo will pitch this entire season at age 35 and has proven himself to be durable, effective, and adaptable. He threw nine different pitches last season, including six at least 8% of the time, plus he throws strikes consistently. The Royals got out in front of Michael Wacha’s opt-out decision this winter and signed him to a three-year extension before he hit the market. I have to think they will look to do the same with Lugo after this season, assuming he performs well and stays healthy.
Contract status: $25 million player option for 2026 ($5 million buyout)
The Cubs will pay $2.5 million toward Bellinger’s 2026 compensation, be it the salary or buyout. He has ranked near the top of the league in pulled fly-ball rate the last few years and hoo boy, if you’re a lefty who pulls the ball in the air, you have a chance to put up huge numbers in Yankee Stadium. Bellinger was coming off a very good 2023 season when he signed his current deal, a three-year pact worth $80 million, which goes to show teams value the underlying numbers (exit velocity, etc.) more than the raw slash line. A big home run total no longer automatically equals a huge payday. Bellinger will turn 30 in July, which is still young enough to secure a nice multi-year free agent contract, plus he adds value on the bases and in the field.
Contract status: Can opt out of final year and $10 million
Flaherty’s 2026 salary will increase to $20 million once he makes his 15th start in 2025. His prolonged free agency and the contract structure suggest there are physical concerns. For all intents and purposes, this is a one-year contract with a $10 million insurance policy. If Flaherty’s healthy enough to make 15 starts and trigger the extra $10 million in 2026, he’ll likely be healthy enough to opt out and seek a bigger contract. He’s hoping to do what Blake Snell did last year. Sign a short-term deal, have a strong year, re-enter free agency, then land that nine-figure deal. Flaherty is among the players with the most to gain in 2025.
Contract status: Can opt out of final year and $24 million
It took more than three months, but the Mets and Alonso finally reunited earlier this month. He reportedly took a two-year deal worth $54 million over a three-year contract worth $71 million because it guaranteed him more money upfront, before he could opt out (the three-year deal included two opt outs). The free-agent market is unkind to first basemen, as Alonso learned this offseason, and he’ll be another year older next offseason. Alonso remains a very productive player, though his performance has slipped the last few years, and if that continues in 2025, opting out is not a given. This is an important year for Alonso. His opt-out decision will be fascinating.
Contract status: Can opt out of final two years and $80 million
Bregman’s new contract includes a bunch of deferrals that, for our purposes, are irrelevant. The Boston Globe reports Bregman is owed $80 million across 2026-28, so that’s what he would be walking away from should he use his opt out. How the $80 million is scheduled to be paid out doesn’t matter. As a right-handed hitter, his pull-heavy approach is perfect for Fenway Park, though the same was true with Daikin Park (formerly Minute Maid Park), and Bregman still had to wait until the eve of spring training to sign. He’ll turn 31 next month. A big year would put pressure on the Red Sox to keep Bregman beyond the terms of his current contract, though passing up $80 million to give free agency another go would carry some risk for him.
Contract status: $16 million player option for 2026 ($4 million buyout)
The Guardians re-signed their longtime ace and the 2020 AL Cy Young winner this offseason, though don’t expect to see him on a mound until sometime around the All-Star break. Bieber had Tommy John surgery last April and these days elbow reconstruction comes with a 14-16 month recovery. His rehab is going well and he is expected to begin throwing off a mound very soon, if he hasn’t already. The buyout makes the player option a $12 million decision for Bieber, and while that may seem like a lot for a pitcher who may only make 10-15 starts this year, remember that the much older Alex Cobb signed a $15 million contract this offseason after making only five starts in 2024 (postseason included). Bieber will turn only 30 in May and he has an excellent track record. The player option is an insurance policy in case his rehab hits a snag and he doesn’t return at midseason, basically.
Contract status: Can opt out of final two years and $33 million
The O’s hired GM Mike Elias in November 2018 and O’Neill is the only free agent he’s signed to a multi-year contract. And even then, O’Neill can opt out of his deal after the first year. Every other free-agent signing was a one-year guarantee. O’Neill, 29, is coming off a terrific bounce back season with the Red Sox, one that saw him slug 31 homers and clear 100 games played for the first time since 2021. When he’s healthy, he tends to perform very well. When he’s battling through injuries, the performance hasn’t been there. If he stays on the field in 2025, O’Neill will be in good shape to opt out and perhaps double the guaranteed money remaining on his contract. If not, he can fall back on that $33 million.
Contract status: It’s complicated
Sometimes it feels like front offices and agents are bored, so they come up with complicated contract structures to keep themselves entertained. Imanaga will earn $13 million in 2025. Here’s what’s in play after the season:
- The Cubs hold a three-year, $57 million club option covering 2026-28.
- If the Cubs decline the 2026-28 club option, Imanaga gets a one-year player option worth $15 million for 2026.
- If Imanaga picks up the player option, the Cubs get a two-year club option worth $42 million covering 2027-28.
- If the Cubs decline the 2027-28 club option, Imanaga gets a $15 million player option for 2027.
Got all that? For Imanaga to become a free agent after 2025, the Cubs would have to decline the $57 million club option for 2026-28, and he would have to then decline his $15 million player option for 2026. When so many things have to happen for the player to become a free agent, bet on him not becoming a free agent. Chances are either the club option or player option will get picked up. Imanaga, 31, had a terrific year in 2024, his first season after coming over from Japan. With a repeat of that, the Cubs will clearly pick up the club option and simplify all of this.
Contract status: Can opt out of final year and $16 million
Kim was a tough one to place on this list. On one hand, he’s a wonderful player, one who provides big value defensively and enough at the plate. On the other hand, Kim is coming off labrum surgery on his throwing shoulder, and that’s worrisome for a player who does his best work in the field. Indications are Kim will return in late April or May. If that happens and he looks like the Kim who was a fan favorite with the Padres from 2022-24, he’ll opt out and cash in handsomely. Possibly to the tune of nine figures. Kim will play the entire 2025 season at age 29. Things would have to go pretty poorly after surgery to stay on this contract in 2026. Standout up-the-middle defenders tend to get paid well in free agency, but the labrum surgery is a huge X-factor.
Others with opt outs/player options: Lucas Giolito, Red Sox; A.J. Minter, Mets; Frankie Montas, Mets; Joc Pederson, Rangers; Trevor Story, Red Sox; Robert Suarez, Padres
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