Ranking MLB’s Newest Free Agents Who Were Non-Tendered at the Deadline
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The non-tender deadline marks the annual decision each MLB team faces on whether to offer or “tender” a contract to the arbitration-eligible players on their roster.
If they tender a contract, the team and player can continue to negotiate a salary figure for the upcoming season in an effort to avoid an arbitration hearing. If they do not tender a contract, the player is considered to be “non-tendered” and immediately becomes a free agent.
Former NL MVP Cody Bellinger was the biggest name cut loose at the non-tender deadline last year, while Jeimer Candelario also emerged as a solid contributor and eventual trade chip after he was non-tendered by the Detroit Tigers.
The deadline for non-tender decisions was 8 PM ET on Friday night, so let’s take a quick look at the most notable names that are now part of the 2023-24 MLB free-agent class.
Ahead is our top 10 non-tendered players based on their expected contributions for the upcoming season and earning power.
9. OF Kyle Lewis
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2023 Stats: 54 PA, 25 OPS+, .157/.204/.255, 3 XBH (1 HR), 2 RBI, -0.5 WAR
Why He Was Non-Tendered
The D-backs acquired Kyle Lewis from the Seattle Mariners last offseason in exchange for prospect Cooper Hummel, but he played just 16 games at the MLB level. The 28-year-old has played 70 total games in the big leagues over the past three seasons while battling injuries, and the D-backs decided to cut ties despite the fact that he had club control remaining through the 2026 season.
Free Agency Outlook
Lewis has done little to inspire optimism in the majors over the last few seasons, but he’s still not all that far removed from winning AL Rookie of the Year honors in 2020 when he posted a 124 OPS+ with 11 home runs and 1.6 WAR in 58 games. He hit .371/.457/.641 with 92 hits, 17 home runs and 80 RBI in 63 games at Triple-A. It was a hitter-friendly environment, but a clean bill of health could make him a nice under-the-radar power pickup.
8. IF/OF Garrett Hampson
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2023 Stats: 252 PA, 98 OPS+, .276/.349/.380, 16 XBH (3 HR), 23 RBI, 1.3 WAR
Why He Was Non-Tendered
Garrett Hampson was non-tendered for the second offseason in a row after spending the first five seasons of his MLB career with the Colorado Rockies. The speedy utility player does not offer a ton of extra-base power, and that’s something the Marlins desperately need, so it’s not surprising to see him cut loose.
Free Agency Outlook
With multiple starts at second base, shortstop, third base and all three outfield spots, Hampson is an extremely versatile player, and he logged a career-high 1.3 WAR during the 2023 season. The 29-year-old had a .242 expected batting average speaks to him playing over his head a bit, but he can still serve as a useful bench piece.
7. RHP Adam Cimber
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2023 Stats: 22 G, 1 HLD, 7.40 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 7 BB, 12 K, 20.2 IP, -0.7 WAR
Why He Was Non-Tendered
Adam Cimber threw his four-seam fastball a career-high 41.2 percent of the time during the 2023 season, but opponents hit .382 with a .676 slugging percentage against the pitch and his previously elite groundball rate fell. After two seasons as a reliable arm in the Toronto Blue Jays bullpen he was no longer a go-to option.
Free Agency Outlook
Cimber is just a year removed from making an AL-leading 77 appearances while posting a 2.80 ERA and 1.12 WHIP with four saves and 19 holds. The 33-year-old gets by more on deception than stuff, so it’s easier to envision him returning to form than a flame-throwing reliever who lost a tick in velocity.
6. DH/1B Daniel Vogelbach
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2023 Stats: 319 PA, 104 OPS+, .233/.339/.404, 21 XBH (13 HR), 48 RBI, 0.2 WAR
Why He Was Non-Tendered
Daniel Vogelbach is a strict platoon player who provides zero value defensively or on the base paths, so his limited skill set is no doubt the reason for his non-tender. He went 0-for-16 with eight strikeouts against left-handed pitching as the New York Mets did their best to shield him from southpaws, and his 104 OPS+ wasn’t good enough to balance his other shortcomings.
Free Agency Outlook
On a positive note, Vogelbach had an .825 OPS with eight home runs and 22 RBI in 122 plate appearances after the All-Star break, so he ended an otherwise middling season on a high note. The 30-year-old has provided consistent pop from the left side of the plate and decent on-base numbers throughout his career, but he may have to settle for a minor league deal.
5. OF Austin Meadows
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2023 Stats: 21 PA, 43 OPS+, .238/.238/.524, 1 XBH (0 HR), 2 RBI, -0.2 WAR
Why He Was Non-Tendered
Acquired in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays prior to the 2022 season in exchange for Isaac Paredes, outfielder Austin Meadows played just 42 games during his two seasons with the Detroit Tigers. The 28-year-old stepped away from the team after only six games in 2023 to seek help for anxiety issues.
Free Agency Outlook
Meadows looked like a budding star during his time in Tampa Bay, including a 33-homer, 3.9-WAR season in 2019 when he was an All-Star and a 27-homer, 106-RBI showing in 2021 before he was traded. If he is ready to return to the field, he could wind up being one of the steals of the offseason in the right situation.
4. 1B Rowdy Tellez
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2023 Stats: 351 PA, 82 OPS+, .215/.291/.376, 23 XBH (13 HR), 47 RBI, -0.6 WAR
Why He Was Non-Tendered
With a .694 OPS against left-handed pitching in his career and zero value as a defender or base-runner, Rowdy Tellez is only as valuable as the power numbers he produces in the batter’s box. The Milwaukee Brewers swung a trade for his replacement on Friday afternoon when they acquired Jake Bauers from the New York Yankees.
Free Agency Outlook
Just a year removed from posting a 113 OPS+ with 35 home runs and still only 28 years old, someone will take a chance on Tellez regaining his power stroke. His hard-hit rate (46.0 to 40.4 percent), average exit velocity (91.1 to 89.9 mph) and barrel rate (12.9 to 8.7 percent) all took a significant step in the wrong direction, so he might need to prove himself on a minor league deal.
3. IF/OF Nick Senzel
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2023 Stats: 330 PA, 85 OPS+, .236/.297/.399, 23 XBH (13 HR), 42 RBI, 0.0 WAR
Why He Was Non-Tendered
Few players in baseball more clearly need a change of scenery than Nick Senzel, who has simply never lived up to the expectations that came with being the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 draft. The recent influx of young position player talent on the Cincinnati Reds roster has made it increasingly difficult to see how the former top prospect fits into the team’s plans.
Free Agency Outlook
Senzel played all three outfield spots, third base and second base during the 2023 season, and that versatility will be his ticket to finding a role elsewhere. Still just 28 years old, he showed some decent pop while hitting .348/.389/.619 with 14 extra-base hits in 126 plate appearances against left-handed pitching. If nothing else, he will have platoon appeal.
2. RHP Dakota Hudson
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2023 Stats: 18 G, 12 GS, 6-3, 4.98 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 34 BB, 45 K, 81.1 IP, 0.5 WAR
Why He Was Non-Tendered
The Cardinals rotation was one of the worst in baseball during the 2023 season with a 5.07 ERA that ranked 26th in the majors, and Hudson was certainly part of the problem. With the club looking to rebuild the staff this offseason, moving on from an underperforming starter who has dealt with some command issues made sense.
Free Agency Outlook
The No. 34 overall pick in the 2016 draft and the No. 74 prospect in baseball at the start of the 2019 season, Hudson was viewed as a potential fixture in the St. Louis rotation when he went 16-7 with a 3.35 ERA in 174.2 innings to finish fifth in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2019. Injuries and inconsistency have kept him from replicating that level of production, but he has a 107 ERA+ over 470.2 career innings and is still only 29 years old, making him an attractive buy-low reclamation project.
1. RHP Brandon Woodruff
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2023 Stats: 11 GS, 5-1, 2.28 ERA, 0.82 WHIP, 15 BB, 74 K, 67.0 IP, 2.4 WAR
Why He Was Non-Tendered
One of the best pitchers in Milwaukee Brewers franchise history, Brandon Woodruff would have been a no-brainer to tender a contract until he underwent shoulder surgery on Oct. 13 that could sideline him for the entire 2024 season.
The two-time All-Star will be a free agent after the 2024 season, so paying him $11.6 million to spent the year rehabbing only to watch him depart in free agency made non-tendering him the logical decision.
Free Agency Outlook
Woodruff will be a prime candidate for a back-loaded, two-year deal that will allow a team to potentially lock him up at a bargain rate for 2025 by paying him a modest salary in 2024 while he recovers. The Atlanta Braves signed All-Star closer Kirby Yates to a similarly structured deal prior to the 2022 season while he recovered from Tommy John surgery, and there have been multiple examples of that approach of the years.