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Five most intriguing players to enter MLB free agency at non-tender deadline, including former top-five pick

Written by CBS SPORTS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED on November 23, 2024

Major League Baseball’s non-tender deadline came and went at 8 p.m. ET Friday night. Each year, this process adds to the free-agent pool and it could be an opportunity for teams to go bargain shopping while the players become change-of-scenery candidates.

For those unfamiliar, the deadline means teams need to decided whether or not to offer contracts for the 2025 season to arbitration-eligible and pre-arbitration players, or every player that either doesn’t have enough service time to have reached free agency or without a guaranteed contract that eats up arbitration years. The players are either “tendered” contracts or non-tendered, which means they immediately become free agents without hitting waivers.

We’re keeping tabs of every non-tendered player below, starting with the most intriguing players who are entering the free agency pool.

Notable non-tendered MLB players

1. Chicago Cubs: INF Nick Madrigal

The No. 4 pick in the 2018 draft is now a free agent. Madrigal has not hit much in the big leagues (career 86 OPS+) because he is devoid of power. He’s a prime example that there’s more to life than getting the bat on the ball. Madrigal is a good defender at second and third bases, occasionally even great. The Cubs cut him loose rather than pay a projected $2 million or so through arbitration.

2. Los Angeles Angels: LHP Patrick Sandoval

The Angels have cut ties with their 2024 Opening Day starter. Sandoval made 16 starts this season before his elbow began barking. He had Tommy John surgery in late June and will miss most, if not all, of the 2025 season. The Angels opted against paying Sandoval roughly $6 million to rehab next year even though they would have been able to keep him as an arbitration-eligible player in 2026. Sandoval, 28, has a career 4.01 ERA.

3. Philadelphia Phillies: OF Austin Hays

Hays came over in a deadline deal with the Orioles in 2024, but he never found his footing in Philly. He hit .256/.275/.397 in 22 games with the Phillies, and he managed just five total homers in 85 games last season (he spent the first four months of the season with the Orioles). Hays has a career 107 OPS+ and that includes an .800 career OPS against left-handers. Hays was projected for a salary north of $6 million through arbitration.

4. Toronto Blue Jays: RHP Jordan Romano

A two-time All-Star, Romano was non-tendered by the Blue Jays after elbow trouble limited him to 15 appearances in 2024. He did not pitch after May 29, and when he did pitch, he was not effective (10 runs in 13 2/3 innings). Romano was projected to earn approximately $8 million through arbitration. He had arthroscopic surgery on his elbow in July and the non-tender suggests Toronto has enough concern about Romano’s health that they didn’t want to sink $8 million or so into him in 2025.

5. Washington Nationals: RHP Kyle Finnegan

Washington’s closer the last two seasons, Finnegan was an All-Star in 2024, and he’s thrown at least 60 innings each of the last four years. His saves total was expected to push his 2025 salary into the $9 million range, which the Nationals have deemed too pricey for a 33-year-old reliever whose underlying numbers (strikeout rate, walk rate, etc.) are middling. The Nationals presumably were unable to find a taker for Finnegan in a trade before going ahead with the non-tender.