MLB Free Agents Primed for Career Revival with New Teams in 2023
Sometimes, a change of scenery is necessary for a baseball player. Whether it be due to their own personal struggles, poor fit or simply time to move on, making that switch can make a huge difference in performance.
There are some free agents this cycle who could either use a change of scenery or will almost certainly get one, whether they like it or not.
Here, we'll dive into which free agents are primed for a career revival with their new teams in 2023. The ones with player or club options are included with the expectation that the sides will move on.
Mike Zunino, Catcher
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After the Tampa Bay Rays picked up his club option for 2022, the power-hitting catcher had a disappointing start before thoracic outlet syndrome ended his season after 36 games. He slashed just .148/.195/.304 in 115 at-bats.
Now, Zunino is one of the Rays' key pending free agents. They could bring him back, which should immediately give a boost to the position. But if they let him walk, Zunino will make some team desperate for a catcher really happy.
In 2021, he slashed .216/.301/.559 with a career-high 33 home runs and earned his first and only All-Star appearance of his career. A healthy Zunino at age 32 with a full season's sample size should be good for about 20 homers.
Zunino was also one of the better defensive catchers the last time he played a full season, tying for ninth in defensive runs saved and sixth in defensive runs above average among fellow backstops in 2021.
Adam Frazier, IF/OF
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It was just over a year ago when Frazier was named an All-Star with the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates. Since then, he was dealt at last year's trade deadline to boost the San Diego Padres lineup and was traded again last November to the Seattle Mariners to become their everyday second baseman.
But Frazier's struggled to find consistency at the plate since his Midsummer Classic selection in 2021. Before last year's All-Star break, Frazier slashed .330/.397/.463. After the intermission, his slash line dropped to .266/.323/.332.
This year with Seattle, his numbers dropped to .238/.301/.311. The Mariners are likely to move on from Frazier as they try to make a second consecutive postseason run.
He shows flashes that are difficult to ignore, like in July when he hit .314, or when he delivered one of the biggest hits of the Mariners' season with a go-ahead RBI double in their historic comeback against the Toronto Blue Jays in the wild-card series.
Michael Brantley, LF/DH
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Brantley didn't really fall off in 2022. Look at his career numbers, and you'll see a model of consistency over the last 14 seasons.
But as it's been the case with Brantley, injuries tripped him up. Specifically, shoulder surgery limited him to just 64 games as the Astros scrambled to find a suitable left field/designated hitter replacement in his absence.
Brantley was a .300 hitter in three seasons with the Astros until this one, hitting .288 in 243 at-bats. For all of Houston's success this season, it's easy to forget Brantley's one of their best hitters, and he's sitting on the injured list.
The Astros could certainly bring Brantley back, especially considering his trade-deadline replacement Trey Mancini has not quite measured up. (The 30-year-old has a mutual option for next season.)
Brantley said he would like to return to Houston, but another team could outbid the Astros for his services. It almost happened two offseasons ago with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Any team in need of a corner outfielder or DH should be taking a long look at what could be one of the best bargains of the offseason.
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Elvis Andrus, SS
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Andrus appeared to be having a career revival this year after playing a lot on bad teams.
Briefly, it appeared as though signing with the Chicago White Sox after being released by the Oakland Athletics this year could be the revival he was looking for and an opportunity to play in the postseason for the first time since the Texas Rangers made it in 2016.
But even one of Andrus' best years offensively couldn't save the White Sox from floundering in the AL Central. His 17 homers across his stints with A's and White Sox this season was his most since 2017, when he hit 20.
If a good team misses out in another star-studded free-agent shortstop class, Andrus should be in play with the expectation that he picks up where he left off in 2022.
Kolten Wong, 2B
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Wong had a really odd season. The two-time Gold Glove Award winner struggled defensively. Only one second baseman was worse in outs above average: Nolan Gorman, who occupies his former spot with the St. Louis Cardinals.
While it seemed highly unlikely the Milwaukee Brewers would let him walk after signing a two-year, $18 million contract in 2021, the team has an option for 2023 and would save $8 million in salary if they buy him out.
Considering how disappointing a season it was for Milwaukee and given Wong's underperformance defensively, now it looks like an accomplished second baseman will have to find a new home.
Wherever that is, Wong is primed to bounce back to being the defensive player he was in St. Louis, where he won back-to-back Gold Gloves in 2019 and 2020.
He posted a career bests in OPS+ (118) and home runs (15) in 2022, so now it's about putting it all together.
Sean Manaea, LHP
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Overall, Manaea did not provide the effectiveness the Padres were hoping for when they shopped in Oakland's fire sale shortly before the start of this season.
Manaea posted a career-worst 4.96 ERA with San Diego. His 1.30 WHIP was his worst since 2017. Of course, no one will forget the five earned runs he gave up in 1.1 innings against the Phillies in the NLCS.
The Padres are already projected to have a $177.7 million payroll before any options factor in, so it's reasonable they would move on from a player who wasn't good for them in a contract year.
Nonetheless, he is just a year removed from having the 10th-lowest ERA and WHIP of any AL starter.
Manaea could still be someone else's treasure. He won't be regarded as one of the better pitchers on the market and should come at a reasonable price.
Kyle Gibson, RHP
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The Phillies probably expected Gibson to be more than just an innings-eater when they traded for him in 2021 at the deadline. He was the Texas Rangers' Opening Day starter and a first-time All-Star at the time of the trade.
Gibson has not pitched like an All-Star since arriving in Philly. He has a 5.06 ERA over 236.2 innings for the Phillies, albeit with a 4.21 FIP. Gibson isn't much more than a long relief option on this Philly World Series squad.
It's entirely possible that Gibson's start to 2021 was a blip, considering he's regressed back to his career numbers since being dealt to Philly.
But he can still be a viable back-end starter for a team like the Toronto Blue Jays, who could use some help behind Kevin Gausman, José Berríos and Alek Manoah.
Jake Odorizzi, RHP
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The last time Odorizzi was a free agent, he signed with the Astros during spring training ahead of the 2021 season. For Houston, it was a reaction to lefty Framber Valdez suffering a broken finger on a comebacker in spring training.
At the time, the Astros did not know how long they would be without Valdez, who had emerged as a top-of-the-rotation arm, especially with Justin Verlander still recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Odorizzi had been successful against Houston and was an All-Star in the most recent full season (2019 with the Minnesota Twins), posting a 3.51 ERA and 178 strikeouts in 159 innings.
He pitched OK for Houston, but by the 2022 trade deadline, he was an excess starter with a $12.5 million player option for 2023 before getting traded to the Atlanta Braves.
A prospective team should hope they're getting the Odorizzi whose ERA was 3.75 in 12 starts with Houston this year, rather than the 5.24 ERA he posted in 10 starts with Atlanta.
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