Contract Crowdsourcing 2025-26: Ballot 9 of 12
Free agency begins five days after the end of the World Series. As in other recent seasons, FanGraphs is once again facilitating a contract crowdsourcing project, with the idea being to harness the wisdom of the crowd to better understand and project the 2025-26 free agent market.
In recent years, we’ve added a few features to these ballots based on reader feedback. You now have the option to indicate that a player will only receive a minor league contract, or won’t receive one at all. If there is a player option, team option, or opt out in a player’s contract, you’ll be able to indicate whether you think he will remain with his current team or become a free agent. Numbers are prorated to full season where noted. Unless otherwise indicated, the projected WAR figures are from the first cut of the 2026 Steamer600 projections.
Below are ballots for 10 of this year’s potential free agents — in this case, a mix of pitchers and position players who have options or opt outs associated with their current contracts. Not all of them will actually reach free agency, but in the event they do, we’re interested in gauging their next contract.
Meg is the editor-in-chief of FanGraphs and the co-host of Effectively Wild. Prior to joining FanGraphs, her work appeared at Baseball Prospectus, Lookout Landing, and Just A Bit Outside. You can follow her on Bluesky @megrowler.fangraphs.com.
Elias Diaz is on his last legs and taking a quick look he is by far the most forgettable all star game MVP in history. I believe the only other winners who only made one all star game are LaMarr Hoyt, Melky Cabrera, Eric Hosmer, and Jarred Duran (who could obviously make more). Diaz is basically a replacement level player for his career, too. Hoyt might have the lowest WAR of any other winner at 12.1 (bWAR) but he also won a (undeserved) CYA. Still. 12.1 is a lot more than 0.3.
Obviously he played in the big leagues and nobody can take away his big night in the all star game. Good for him, but this might be the end.
Catching still isn’t that great and he’ll probably get a job as a third catcher.
He seems like someone who would be a typical Cleveland catcher.