2026 MLB Offseason Update: Top Free Agents, Hall of Fame Predictions & Pitching Analytics (2026)

Get ready for an exciting baseball season, folks! In a mere month, pitchers and catchers will be back in action, gearing up for spring training and reigniting the magic of the game. As we eagerly await the return of baseball, there's plenty to keep us, the die-hard baseball enthusiasts, entertained.

The free agent market is still buzzing, with four of the top five and an impressive six of the top ten players on Ben Clemens' Top 50 Free Agents list still unsigned. This includes the former Astros trio, Kyle Tucker, Alex Bregman, and Framber Valdez, who are sure to be hot topics of discussion. And if that's not enough, we have the highly anticipated announcement of the 2026 Baseball Hall of Fame election results on January 20th. Jay Jaffe has been providing us with invaluable insights through his comprehensive player profiles, covering the ballot from top to bottom.

Today, we'll delve into the Hall of Fame topic, but with a unique twist. We'll explore the best pitchers who never received a Hall of Fame vote. Additionally, we have contributions from Michael Baumann, who will be discussing Chandler Simpson, Davy Andrews, who will be examining the skill of inducing pop-ups for pitchers, and Dan Szymborski, who will be explaining the variance in ZiPS projections for different player types.

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2026 MLB Offseason Update: Top Free Agents, Hall of Fame Predictions & Pitching Analytics (2026)
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