From Juan Soto to Corbin Burnes, the 2024-25 MLB offseason was ripe with blockbuster deals for All-Star talents.
However, the most expensive players haven’t been the best performers thus far in 2025. In a new poll of 20 front office executives, MLB insider Mark Feinsand sought to find who the best free agent signings were, according to league consensus.
Alex Bregman, Nick Pivetta named best MLB free agent signings in front office poll
It’s worth noting that plenty of players, including Max Fried of the New York Yankees, have more than lived up to their respective deals this season. However, in a poll with only 20 well-versed voters, some players were sure to get more praise than others.
With that being said, the consensus best free agent signing was Alex Bregman, who received 40% of the vote (eight votes total), which was double any other player.
Through his first 35 games with the Boston Red Sox, the third baseman is slashing .317/.396/.583, good for a 171 wRC+ and 1.8 fWAR. All of those totals rank near the top of the league, and it’s safe to say the 31-year-old is more than living up to the three-year, $120 million deal he signed late in the offseason.
While Bregman is a perennial All-Star, San Diego Padres starter Nick Pivetta has never been this good before. The righty has been so up-and-down in the past that many questioned if he even made the right decision declining the qualifying offer from the Red Sox.
It’s safe to say he did, considering he landed a four-year, $55 million deal with the Padres and is now the No. 2 starter on one of the best teams in the National League. Through six starts (35 1/3 innings), Pivetta is rocking a 1.78 ERA (2.28 FIP) while striking out 29.3% of the hitters he faces (compared to walking just 6.0%). He’s already been worth 1.3fWAR, and it’s easy to see why he earned four votes in Feinsand’s poll.
The only other player to receive multiple votes was Pete Alonso (three votes), who re-signed with the Mets on a very favorable two-year deal worth $54 million. Alonso has a comical 211 wRC+ that ranks second to only Aaron Judge this season, and it’s a safe bet he’ll opt out of his deal next winter in hopes for a better contract.
Only three other players received a vote, all of them earning a sole tally: Carson Kelly (Cubs), Jorge Polanco (Mariners), and Roki Sasaki (Dodgers).
Ignoring the fact that those vote totals only add up to 18 — perhaps two execs abstained? — it’s clear why each of those players got some love. Polanco has accrued a 1.203 OPS and 1.4 fWAR in the heart of Seattle’s order, Kelly has been arguably the best hitter in baseball with a comical 253 wRC+, and Sasaki is just 23 years old with as much potential as any prospect in the league.
