"While stars of that caliber who reach free agency by way of a non-tender are extremely rare, plenty of others find themselves cut loose early by their clubs only to make an impact elsewhere down the line. That could be as a regular in the lineup or rotation or simply as a solid contributor off the bench or out of the bullpen."
"Foley is the prototypical interesting non-tendered pitcher; a reliever with quite a lot of high-end, late-inning experience who was let go after an injury-marred season. Foley made his big league debut with the Tigers in 2021 and has been excellent when healthy. Across 199 2/3 innings of work, he's posted a 3.16 ERA (122 ERA+) with a 3.22 FIP that more or less matches those results."
The MLB non-tender deadline allows teams to release controlled players to free agency early, often because of rising arbitration salaries or 40-man roster constraints. Several high-profile players have been non-tendered in the past and later resurfaced as notable free agents. Many non-tendered players ultimately contribute elsewhere as regulars, bench pieces, or bullpen arms. Recent non-tenders include several pitchers of interest. The list of pitchers is presented alphabetically with ages for the 2026 season. Jake Foley exemplifies an intriguing reliever profile: late-inning experience, injury-marred recent season, 3.16 ERA and 3.22 FIP across 199 2/3 career innings, 18.1% strikeout rate, 6.1% walk rate, and a 54.1% ground-ball rate.
Read at MLB Trade Rumors
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