Big 3 of MLB free agent aces: Max Fried, Corbin Burnes and Blake Snell weigh the money
Published 23 November 2024
They are merely three high-end pitchers in a free agent class that, per usual, will not have a prize for everyone. Yet within the All-Star triumvirate of Corbin Burnes and left-handers Blake Snell and Max Fried, there are plenty of paths to pursue and talent to dream upon.
None will be cheap. Among them, they have three Cy Young Awards – one from each league for Snell – seven All-Star appearances, a World Series title and a couple of pennants. All should command nine-figure contracts.
And with the free agent market slowly easing into focus, USA TODAY Sports examines what each brings to the mound and why certain teams may prefer one over the other:
Medical chart: 2019 IL appearance with shoulder inflammation. Oblique, September 2020. Missed one start in 2021 due to knee problem. COVID-19 IL stint in 2021.
Platform season: 15-9 with a 2.92 ERA in 32 starts for Orioles. Finished fifth in AL Cy Young voting.
Market watch: The youngest of this trio (Fried is 10 months older), Burnes’ combination of age, health and dominance may land him the longest and possibly most lucrative deal of this group. Burnes has made 32 or 33 starts in four of the last five full seasons, and his 28-start 2021 effort earned him the NL Cy Young Award after he led the majors in ERA (2.43), fielding independent pitching (1.63) and strikeouts per nine (12.6).
His FIP hasn't gone below 3.14 since and last year he gave up 22 home runs – one per nine innings – compared to seven in ’21 (a majors-best 0.4 per nine). Still, his 97-mph cutter – he throws it nearly half the time, often for putaway purposes – remains an elite pitch and Burnes ranked in the 95th percentile for hard-hit percentage (31.6%), making the modestly diminished strikeout numbers more palatable.