We are back for the third annual edition of free-agent superlatives, although this offseason will be decidedly less super for some free agents than they might have expected a year ago. Read Jeff Passan's analysis on why this offseason will be so different from recent years ... and then come back here to check out some of the key "what might happen" subplots of the 2020-21 free-agent class.
Guy most likely to get the biggest deal: J.T. Realmuto. This is usually an easy call -- Gerrit Cole last offseason, Bryce Harper the year before that -- but there are three candidates this offseason in Realmuto, George Springer and Trevor Bauer. In his free-agent rankings, colleague Kiley McDaniel predicted Realmuto would get five years, $110 million; Springer four years and $108 million; and Bauer one year, $31 million. Bauer has backed away from his stated intention of signing only one-year deals, however, so a four-year deal coming off his Cy Young season could be in the $120 million range.
Here's why each could get the biggest deal: