MLB Free Agency is right around the corner and there’s plenty of buzz heading into the winner regarding some of the top MLB free agents available. While massive contracts will be handed out and there’ll be plenty of excitement from fan bases over big splashes, some of the big names available might not live up to the hype.
Let’s dive into our list of the most overrated MLB free agents in 2025-’26.
Kyle Tucker, Outfielder
The Chicago Cubs paid a premium to acquire Kyle Tucker last winter, hoping he’d stay healthy and deliver close to MVP-caliber production, then sign a contract extension. None of that happened. Tucker started the season on a tear at the plate, posting a .923 OPS with a .290/.393/.530 triple-slash line, 52 RBI, 21 steals, 18 doubles, and 17 home runs in 370 plate appearances.
He then played through an injury during the summer, compiling just a .223/.349/.346 triple-slash line with a .695 OPS and 5 home runs in his final 218 plate appearances. He eventually landed on the injured list (calf) and then returned in October, posting a modest .745 OPS. Given his history of injuries—214 total games played in the last two seasons—signing the 29-year-old outfielder to a decade-long contract seems unlikely at this point.
Related: 2025 MLB Free Agency Rankings
Bo Bichette, Shortstop
Bo Bichette played through a knee injury in the World Series, hitting a clutch home run that almost won a title for the Toronto Blue Jays. With many consensus MLB free agency rankings viewing him as one of the three best talents available, though, he feels like one of the most overrated players on the open market. Ahead of his age-28 season, the right-handed shortstop hasn’t played more than 139 games in a season since 2022. Furthermore, over the last three seasons, his OPS is eighth (.778) among shortstops, but his poor defense drops him to 15th in fWAR (8.0). Moving to second base would lessen some of that lost value defensively, but a 12th percentile Bat Speed and 41st percentile Barrel rate don’t bode well for long-term success.
Munetaka Murakami. Corner Infielder
With more and more Japanese baseball stars coming over and having success in Major League Baseball, expectations will be set even higher for Munetaka Murakami. In his age-25 season for Yakult, he put up 24 home runs with a .286/.392/.659 slash line, a 1.051 OPS, and 52 RBI in 262 plate appearances. Across eight seasons in the NPB, he hit 246 home runs with a .951 OPS in 3,117 at-bats.
However, the first thing that needs to be recognized is he can’t play third base at the major-league level. Any team that signs him to his projected contract range ($170-$250 million) will be paying that money to a first baseman/designated hitter. It’s also worth noting that Murakami had a 27 percent strikeout rate last year in Japan, and there’s a risk of it reaching 30-plus percent in the majors.
Framber Valdez, Starting Pitcher
Even if you put the incident aside, where Framber Valdez seemed to intentionally hit his catcher with a pitch, there are reasons to be concerned about the two-time All-Star selection after his age-31 season. While Valdez had a strong 3.66 ERA in 2025, it came with one of the biggest Hard-Hit rates allowed (46.3 percent), a 10th percentile average Exit Velocity (90.8 mph), and a 59th percentile Whiff Rate. Valdez isn’t missing as many bats as he used to, and he’s been bad in the postseason (5.31 ERA in 61 innings pitched) since 2021. He might be a quality front-line starter for now, but a team is going to grossly overpay him, and it’ll bite them in a few years.
Trent Grisham, Outfielder
We didn’t originally anticipate Trent Grisham to be on this list until we saw the veteran outfielder ranked as the 11th best player in MLB free agency by The Athletic. If that’s a sign of how clubs are valuing Grisham after his 34-homer season, someone is about to make a big mistake. Let’s first note that a majority of his production came in April (8 home runs and 15 RBI) and August (10 home runs and 17 RBI). We also tend to believe that Grisham’s previous four seasons of production—.206/.307/.371—came across 1,815 plate appearances versus his .811 OPS in 581 plate appearances this past year with the Yankees.
