3 Pending MLB Free Agents Whose Stock is GOING UP

Bo Bichette is among pending free agents whose stock is RISING this season

While some pending free agents are doing their best to help teams make the playoffs, others are trying to ensure they boost their value for the upcoming open market. For some, their contract year has been rough, and their free agent stock is trending down, in some cases plummeting.

For others, they have boosted their stock with a very strong contract year. Let's have a look at three pending free agents whose stock is going UP.

Bo Bichette, Toronto Blue Jays

Perhaps no position player has made more money for themselves this season than the Blue Jays shortstop, Bichette. In 2024, he had a disastrous year, batting .225, a full 65 points below his career average, with an OPS (.598) that fell off a cliff over 200 points below his career mark. And after averaging over 24 home runs the previous three seasons, he hit a paltry four dingers. Yes, 4.

But this season, Bichette is all the way back to his All-Star production, with his numbers across the board rivaling or even surpassing his career marks. He leads the major leagues with 148 hits, has a .296 average, 16 homers, 78 RBIs, an .804 OPS, and is a prime reason that Toronto is shockingly leading the AL East.

Coming into the season, he might have been looking at taking a one-year 'prove it' deal kind of offer in free agency this winter. Now, he's most likely earned himself a $150 million+ contract.

Kyle Schwarber, Philadelphia Phillies

After his second consecutive 100 RBI season last year and an OPS of .850, you'd think it would be difficult for Schwarber's stock to actually go any higher. But guess again. Schwarber has blown the doors off in 2025, raising even his very high ceiling of what he might earn in free agency (or on an extension with the Phillies). Despite previous seasons of 46 and 47 home runs, he is actually on pace to demolish that, with 42 long balls thus far, and his 97 RBIs to date will also obliterate his personal high of 104 ribbies. His .950 OPS is also a career high.

As Zachary Rymer notes in Bleacher Report, Schwarb's exit velocity, barrel% and xSLG are all in the 99th percentile, while his Hard Hit% is in the 100th percentile. Hard to get much better than that. His bat speed is in the 98th percentile, and his walk percentage is in the 96th.

"Schwarber was a good hitter before he came to Philadelphia, but he's now pretty much the idealized version of himself after four years as a Phillie," writes Rymer.

Yes, even at age 33 next season, as a full-time DH, expect Schwarber to ask for, and receive, the moon.

Brandon Woodruff, Milwaukee Brewers

After sitting out for two years recovering from shoulder surgery, including a couple of setbacks earlier this season that kept pushing back his return, some were wondering if the one-time Brewers co-ace would be a shoo-in to just pick up his mutual option at $20 million for next year, and then get himself back to form in a full 2026 season.

But a funny thing happened along the way. Woodruff came back in early July and immediately returned to his former All-Star and Cy Young candidate self, the moment he stepped back on a major league mound. All he did was toss six innings of two-hit ball, one run allowed, no walks and eight strikeouts. Then 10 strikeouts in his second start. Then six shutout innings of two-hit ball in his third start. In seven starts, he has yet to allow more than two earned runs, and has a 2.06 ERA with a 0.73 WHIP and a 49:8 strikeout to walk ratio in 39 innings.

Let's just say he'll be declining that mutual option, and going for a huge multi-year free agent deal.