MLB free agency is exploding at the end of November because of a proposed lockout likely to begin December 1.
That means teams and players alike want to lock in deals before a potential work stoppage that could last months.
But it was hard to predict the spending that would take place.
More specifically, it is shocking to see the teams leading the way.
Top 10 $ committed to free agents so far:
Texas: $561.2 million
New York Mets: $254 million
Toronto: $121 million
Seattle: $115 million
Detroit: $77 million
Houston: $67 million
Miami: $53 million
Los Angeles Angels: $45 million
St. Louis: $44 million
San Francisco: $36 million— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 29, 2021
The Texas Rangers are running wild and have already committed well over $500 million to free agents this month.
Corey Seager and Marcus Semien have been brought in as the Rangers look to return to contention without any more time spent rebuilding.
But a few other teams on the list stand out as well.
Corey Seager is the Rangers' new $325-million man, per @JeffPassan 💰 pic.twitter.com/koi1fG5Vkp
— ESPN (@espn) November 29, 2021
The Spending Is Real This Offseason
The New York Mets are giving Max Scherzer a record deal and were the talk of free agency before the Rangers broke Twitter by signing Semien and Seager.
The Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, and Detroit Tigers are notable additions as well because they represent young American League teams ready to take that next step.
Notice how powerhouses like the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox are not on this list.
One shock comes with the San Francisco Giants, who just had a dominant regular season.
Buster Posey has retired and Kevin Gausman is heading to Toronto, but the Giants are still taking things slow.
That could come back to haunt them in 2022.
Yet their top competition, the Los Angeles Dodgers, are nowhere to be seen on this list either.
MLB free agency will likely be broken up into two parts this offseason.
The first part ends December 1, given a lockout is put into place.
Thus, the second part would begin whenever the two sides come to an agreement about a new collective bargaining agreement.
Perhaps the Rangers are not done spending yet and could even approach $1 billion this offseason.
