10 MLB Players Who Could Change Teams Before the Lockout

Some media and front-office types have opined that Major League Baseball would benefit from the hype of a preset transaction period. Like the "ready... set... go!" free-agency races in the NBA or NFL, or however they do it in European soccer.

Conversely, some players' agents counter that artificial deadlines work against a lot of players, who would feel pressure to sign a deal they otherwise wouldn't. Both sides could have a point.

With owners expected to lock out the players in a month, a transfer window of sorts is about to open in MLB. Many on the inside say to expect a feeding frenzy. With that in mind here are the top players who have a solid chance of changing teams before Dec. 2.

Teoscar Hernandez, who just turned 34, seems like a likely trade candidate for the Los Angeles Dodgers with prospect Josue De Paula ready to play every day in the outfield.

Signed next season for $22 million (with $8 million deferred through 2033), Hernandez also has a $15 million team option for 2028 and a $15 million vesting option for 2029. He's a .256/.308/.441 hitter with 41 homers combined the past two seasons.

Left-hander Adrian Morejon might be the most attractive pitcher on the market named something other than Tarik Skubal. Not quite 27, he hasn't been an everyday starting pitcher since Double-A in 2019, but his four-pitch mix would work in a rotation.

He has made 211 appearances combined over the past three seasons as a high-leverage reliever, and his availability late in the 2026 season was iffy because of shoulder discomfort. But it would be so tempting to see what he could do every fifth day.

Everybody seems to love Hunter Goodman, who has performed about 20% better than league average offensively the past two seasons combined, with 72 home runs in that span. Some of it is Coors Field, but Goodman is a career .487 slugger away from home. His defense was better two years ago than 2026.

Goodman just turned 27 and isn't a free agent until 2030 and it probably would bum out a lot of Rockies fans to move him, but the team needs a lot more than any one player could give.

The Seattle Mariners led the league in innings pitched from their starters, but ranked just ninth in Fangraphs WAR. Should they trade a starter or not? And should it be Logan Gilbert or Bryan Woo?

Gilbert turns 30 in May, has surpassed 1,000 career innings and will be a free agent in 2028. Woo is 26, his innings are still in the 500s and he doesn't seem as durable. He's also not a free agent until 2030. Either one would fetch a lot in trade.

Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte had a difficult season off the field in 2026, and on it too: he lost about 40% of his offensive production at age 32. He still ranked in the 80th-90th percentile in expected batting numbers, and his average exit velocity ticked up.

He would make a great top- or middle-of-the-order guy for any team, and he's still solid on defense. The D-backs are definitely playoff contenders for 2027 with him, but it also makes a lot of sense to move Marte and get younger.

Right-hander Freddy Peralta had a heck of a free-agency audition in the postseason -- until that final appearance, anyway. Still. He just turned 30 and was throwing darts for the Tampa Bay Rays down the stretch and in the playoffs after a mediocre 22 starts for the New York Mets. He's probably the best right-hander in free agency and will make a killing before the lockout starts.

Unless Michael King is the best righty in free agency. Some of his peripheral numbers haven't been great the past two seasons, but he's got a 3.15 ERA over his past 78 appearances. Not to mention: 436 strikeouts in 432 innings. Now age 31, he keeps getting the job done.

Unless Sonny Gray is the best righty in free agency. Gray's adjusted ERA was 50% better than league average, which accounts for the hitter-friendly environment at Fenway Park. Gray turns 37 this week, which will keep his contract on the short side, but he'll make as much for one or two seasons as any pitcher not named Skubal. How many pitchers not named Skubal are there, anyway?

Jazz Chisholm doesn't turn 29 until February, and he's already got 127 home runs and 171 stolen bases in his career. He got off to a slow start in 2026 and, amid periodic injuries, had perhaps his worst overall season, batting .231/.312/.399 with 19 homers. His 41 stolen bases were a career high. He'll probably get paid closer to his All-Star season of 2025.

His defense doesn't rank highly, but Ryan Jeffers hits better than most catchers, and even a lot of players at other positions. His weighted runs created plus ranks 48th since 2023 among players with similar playing time -- better than Julio Rodriguez, Elly De La Cruz and George Springer.