We’ve collected projections for the most anticipated free agents of the last three offseasons: first it was Aaron Judge, then Shohei Ohtani, then Juan Soto (with an update in October).

While there isn’t a massive free agent expected to smash records this winter like Ohtani and Soto did, there are two players who are intriguing for different reasons and also happen to have the same first name: Kyle Schwarber and Kyle Tucker.

From one point of view, Tucker has had a solid walk year, posting 4.7 WAR with his offensive numbers down just a tick from last year’s career year but underlying metrics close to his best seasons. On the other hand, Tucker had a really rough run in August, hitting .148/.233/.148 (16 wRC+) over 15 games (61 plate appearances) from Aug. 1 to Aug. 18. This led to him sitting out games Aug. 19 and 20. The Chicago Cubs right fielder has hit well since returning, but now he’s on the injured list with a calf strain. That said, he was tied for fifth in baseball in WAR at the end of June, and he remains in the top 20.

Schwarber’s season is less complicated. The Philadelphia Phillies slugger has posted career bests in most offensive categories, including his 50 homers, 123 RBIs and 4.5 WAR. The only negatives for his outlook on free agency are that Schwarber will be 33 years old in March and has played only 13 games in the field over the last two seasons. Designated hitters well into their 30s haven’t fared well in free agency, but none of those had hit 50 homers in their walk year, so Schwarber is in uncharted territory.

How much might each of the Kyles get this winter? We polled 20 scouts, executives and agents to find out.

Kyle Tucker

How much could Tucker get?

Here are the 20 responses from our panel, grouped in tiers by total dollars.

Under $350 million (6): 11 years/$308 million, 9 years/$315 million (2x), 8 years/$320 million, 9 years/$340 million, 9 years/$342 million

$350-$399 million (4): 8 years/$352 million, 10 years/$375 million, 12 years/$375 million, 11 years/$380 million

$400-499 million (8): 10 years/$400 million, 11 years/$400 million, 11 years/$418 million, 10 years/$420 million (2x), 10 years/$425 million, 12 years/$425 million, 10 years/$450 million

At least $500 million (2): 10 years/$500 million, 12 years/$550 million

The average of all 20 projections is 10.1 years, $391.5 million, for a $38.8 million average annual value (AAV).

The median projection of those deals is $390 million.

Who are the closest comps?

Tucker’s consistent standout performance (five straight 4-5 fWAR seasons and five straight hitting performances 30% better than league average) makes it hard to find a recent free agent comparison. He’s 10th in baseball in WAR over the last five seasons.

Over the last four free agent classes, the $150M+ position players don’t have a great fit for a comp. Soto’s $765 million deal and Ohtani’s $700 million deal aren’t useful. Shortstops Willy Adames, Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa, Dansby Swanson, Marcus Semien and Corey Seager are positionally quite different, though Seager isn’t a terrible secondary comp. Freddie Freeman was three years older than Tucker as a free agent and Aaron Judge was two years older, while also coming off of an 11.1 WAR season with 62 homers, so neither seems that relevant. Kris Bryant was already trending down when he hit free agency, while Brandon Nimmo was trending up but had years of durability concerns.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s $500 million April extension with the Toronto Blue Jays is the comp that kept coming up with those we surveyed. Vlad’s extension kicks in next year for his age-27 season, while Tucker will be 29. It’s only two years, but it’s a very important two years in projecting the value in a long-term deal. Tucker has more baserunning and positional value, but he’s still a corner outfielder. Guerrero’s extension was signed outside of a competitive bidding situation, with the perception being that the Jays paid a little more than the market would bear to lock up their franchise player after a last-place American League East finish last season and with fellow core player Bo Bichette still unsigned.

Who are Tucker’s potential suitors?

There was little confidence from those surveyed (none of whom work for the Cubs) about the Cubs winning a bidding war for Tucker. The Los Angeles Dodgers, longtime fans of Tucker, were mentioned by a number of industry insiders. We didn’t ask about a projected team, so the Dodgers coming up often seems to be indicative of a feeling in the industry that they’re the team to beat.

Putting all of those pieces together, you can see why a contingent of the industry thinks Tucker will land somewhere around Guerrero’s extension, some think he’ll end up closer to $300 million, but most have him around $400 million, give or take, which is also where Jeff Passan’s sources led him.

Kyle Schwarber

How much could Schwarber get?

Here are the 20 responses from our panel, grouped in tiers by total dollars.

Under $100 million (2): 4 years/$72 million, 3 years/$90 million

$100-$125 million (11): 3 years/$100 million, 4 years/$100 million, 4 years/$110 million (2x), 4 years/$112 million (3x), 5 years/$118 million, 4 years/$120 million (2x), 3 years/$125 million

$126-180 million (5): 4 years/$140 million, 6 years/$150 million, 4 years/$160 million, 5 years/$160 million, 4 years/$180 million

At least $200 million (2): 6 years.$200 million, 7 years/$245 million

The average of all 20 projections is 4.3 years, $131.8 million, for a $30.7 million average annual value (AAV).

The median projection of those deals is $119 million.

Who are the closest comps?

A handful of comps come up for Schwarber:

J.D. Martinez: Five years, $110 million going into his age-30 season in 2018 (45 HRs, 4.3 WAR walk year)

Paul Goldschmidt: Five years, $130 million going into his age-32 season in 2020 (33 HRs, 4.6 WAR in walk year)

Freeman: Six years, $162 million going into his age-32 season in 2022 (31 HRs, 4.7 WAR in walk year)

The comp math would say Schwarber should get one year less than the shortest deal above due to his age (thus, four years) and land in the $25-30 million average annual value (AAV) area, which is right where those surveyed ended up.

Who are Schwarber’s potential suitors?

Conversely to the Tucker/Cubs situation, a lot of those surveyed think there’s a strong chance the Phillies will act quickly after the season ends to bring Schwarber back. Either way, he seems to be a target for a contending team looking to beef up the middle of its lineup in the short term, and hopefully not have an albatross on its ledger at the end of the deal.

All of those teams would be conscious of luxury tax numbers, and a rival agent brought up an interesting wrinkle he’s expecting to see: Schwarber will get that fifth year, for a little added money, to get the AAV down.

A number of teams should be interested at that low-nine-figure area, as the predictions suggest, but there could eventually be a landing spot closer to $150 million with enough competitive bidding. That said, some teams simply can’t stomach that kind of money for an older DH.

A number of teams are starting to shift their focus to October as the final month of the 2025 MLB regular season continues.

The Detroit Tigers are pretty much a postseason lock with a whopping lead in the AL Central, and the Philadelphia Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers are comfortably sitting atop their respective divisions.

Beyond division races, there are many storylines to watch as the regular season comes to an end and playoffs begin: Where do current playoff matchups stand? What games should you be paying attention to each day leading up to October? Who will be the first team to clinch a postseason berth? And what does the playoff schedule look like?

We have everything you need to know as the regular season hits the homestretch.

Key links: Full MLB standings | Wild-card standings

Who can clinch a playoff spot next?

The Brewers’ magic number is two, which means they could clinch a playoff spot in the coming days.

The Tigers, Phillies, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres all have at least a 98% chance of making the postseason.

What are this October’s MLB playoff matchups as it stands now?

American League

Wild-card round: (6) Mariners at (3) Astros, (5) Red Sox at (4) Yankees

ALDS: Mariners/Astros vs. (2) Tigers, Red Sox/Yankees vs. (1) Blue Jays

National League

Wild-card round: (6) Mets at (3) Dodgers, (5) Padres at (4) Cubs

NLDS: Mets/Dodgers vs. (2) Phillies, Padres/Cubs vs. (1) Brewers

Breaking down the AL race

The Blue Jays and Tigers enter the homestretch battling for the AL’s No. 1 seed, with Detroit all but a lock for the AL Central crown. While Toronto sits atop the AL East, the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees are duking it out for wild-card seeding. And, in what seems to be a yearly September occurrence, the Houston Astros are attempting to separate themselves from the Seattle Mariners in a two-team AL West race. Meanwhile, a Seattle swoon has allowed the Texas Rangers and Cleveland Guardians to remain within striking distance for the final wild-card spot.

And what about when these teams get to the postseason? Here’s what their chances are for every round:

Breaking down the NL race

A group of contenders have separated themselves atop the NL standings with the New York Mets trying to keep a comfortable lead over the San Francisco Giants and Cincinnati Reds for the final playoff spot. The Phillies and Brewers are seemingly cruising to division titles, but there is plenty of intrigue in the NL West as the Dodgers attempt to fend off the Padres for the division crown.

And what about when these teams get to the postseason? Here’s what their chances are for every round:

Game of the day

Looking for something to watch today? Here’s the baseball game with the biggest playoff implications:

Playoff schedule

Wild-card series
Best of three, all games at better seed’s stadium

Game 1: Tuesday, Sept. 30
Game 2: Wednesday, Oct. 1
Game 3: Thursday, Oct. 2*

Division series
Best of five

ALDS
Game 1: Saturday, Oct. 4
Game 2: Sunday, Oct. 5
Game 3: Tuesday, Oct. 7
Game 4: Wednesday, Oct. 8*
Game 5: Friday, Oct. 10*

NLDS
Game 1: Saturday, Oct. 4
Game 2: Monday, Oct. 6
Game 3: Wednesday, Oct. 8
Game 4: Thursday, Oct. 9*
Game 5: Saturday, Oct. 11*

League championship series
Best of seven

ALCS
Game 1: Sunday, Oct. 12
Game 2: Monday, Oct. 13
Game 3: Wednesday, Oct. 15
Game 4: Thursday, Oct. 16
Game 5: Friday, Oct. 17*
Game 6: Sunday, Oct. 19*
Game 7: Monday, Oct. 20*

NLCS
Game 1: Monday, Oct. 13
Game 2: Tuesday, Oct. 14
Game 3: Thursday, Oct. 16
Game 4: Friday, Oct. 17
Game 5: Saturday, Oct. 18*
Game 6: Monday, Oct. 20*
Game 7: Tuesday, Oct. 21*

World Series
Best of seven

Game 1: Friday, Oct. 24
Game 2: Saturday, Oct. 25
Game 3: Monday, Oct. 27
Game 4: Tuesday, Oct. 28
Game 5: Wednesday, Oct. 29*
Game 6: Friday, Oct. 31*
Game 7: Saturday, Nov. 1*

* If necessary

Walker Buehler can’t wait to return to the major leagues Friday, when he’ll take the ball for the Philadelphia Phillies for the first game of a three-game series against the Kansas City Royals.

Among the main reasons for Buehler’s excitement: He hated the automated ball-strike system used in the minors and was likely to be considered by MLB for regular-season use.

“I think it’s inaccurate,” said Buehler, an eight-year veteran and two-time All-Star. “I think in most of the stadiums, it’s not even actually on the plate. I think it shifts certain directions in certain ballparks. I think human element is a huge part of this game. I think starting pitchers that have pitched for a long time deserve certain parts of the plate that other guys don’t get.”

He added: “I think the punishment for challenging something that’s clearly a strike is not big enough. I could kind of go on. I think the ABS system in general is a very good idea. I don’t think we have any idea where to put it on the plate. I don’t think we have any idea how to function it correctly in terms of angles at ballparks. I don’t think the umpires unions are going to be very happy about it.”

Buehler, who helped the Los Angeles Dodgers to World Series titles in 2020 and 2024, was released by the Boston Red Sox in August after going 7-7 with a 5.45 ERA in 23 games, 22 of which were starts. He was quickly signed by the National League East-leading Phillies, who had an opening in their rotation after ace Zack Wheeler was recently lost for the season — and possibly longer — because of thoracic outlet syndrome.

Buehler thinks he can help Philadelphia as it chases its first World Series title since 2008.

“They’re deep and talented and I hope I can contribute in some way,” Buehler said ahead of Thursday’s game against the New York Mets. “Kind of get back on my feet a little bit and hopefully capture a good month, month-and-a-half here and help us win this thing.”

The Phillies will move to a six-man rotation down the stretch.

Buehler will be eligible to pitch in the postseason and was assigned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits and three walks in three innings in his lone start. He struck out five and threw 47 of 78 pitches for strikes.

Buehler signed a one-year, $21.05 million deal last offseason with the Red Sox and was expected to be a key member of their rotation. But he went on the injured list early in the season with a shoulder injury and never found his top form.

Boston demoted the 6-foot-2, 185-pounder from its rotation following his start Aug. 19. He made one appearance for the Red Sox out of the bullpen, allowing two runs in 2⅓ innings against the Yankees on Aug. 24. He was released to make room for top prospect Payton Tolle.

One of Buehler’s better outings this season came against the Phillies in Philadelphia on July 21 when he allowed one earned run on six hits in seven innings while striking out four and walking one.

Phillies president Dave Dombrowski said that team officials, including manager Rob Thomson, had a good Zoom conversation with Buehler and his representatives when he was signed. The discussion included a back-and-forth with pitching coach Caleb Cotham in which the two connected.

“I think a lot of the times the DFA process over the phone is between the agent and one guy in the org,” Buehler said. “For us to have a phone call at all, and for those guys to take time out of their day to be on it, was huge. Kind of a confidence boost for me, or whatever you might call it.”

Buehler struggled last year coming off a second Tommy John surgery but pitched a perfect ninth in the Series clincher two days after pitching five shutout innings as the starter in Game 3.

“This rehab, as weird as it sounds being two years healthy on it, it takes time,” Buehler said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.