MLBTRs positional preview of the upcoming free agent cla s continues with a look at this winters thin crop of center fielders. Its a bleak group, particularly if the potential top name available forgoes an opportunity to opt out and return to the open market. Its worth reminding that veteran center fielder has said he . has . As such, neither is included below. Player ages, listed in parenthesis, are for the 2025 season. Stats are through play on September 23. Only players who have appeared in the majors this year are included. Other Entries: | | | | The Opt-Out Po sibility (30) Bellingers three-year, $80MM deal with the Cubs allows him to opt back into free agency either this winter or in the 2025-26 offseason. Hes having a solid year but has still posted le ser results than in his stellar rebound campaign in 2023. Bellinger has appeared in 126 games and taken 553 turns at the plate, batting .263/.324/.425 with 18 home runs in that span. Hes spent more time at first base than in center field, in part because of the emergence of top prospect in center but also due to a decline in Bellingers own grades there. Bellinger is the only free agent option in center who can be realistically expected to provide above-average offense. But his contract calls for a $27.5MM salary next season if he declines to opt out, with $25MM more to come in 2026. Bellinger could very likely top the remaining two years and $50MM in guaranteed money on his contract but not that $27.5MM salary for next season. And, since he has an opt-out provision next winter with a $5MM buyout, he could get the best of both worlds if he stays in Chicago, bets on a more productive 2025 campaign at the plate, and opts out next winter. Theres some risk and thus a case for Bellinger to opt out right now in search of a maximum guarantee, but hes already bet on himself twice by taking short-term deals in free agency. If he wants to bet on himself once more, the path to the most earnings would be to take next years $27.5MM, turn in a big season, take the $5MM buyout and look to cash in post-2025. Glove-First Players (31) Baders .241/.290/.381 batting line this season is 11% worse than league-average, by measure of wRC+. Hes still smacked 12 homers and swiped 17 bags, though those steals have come in an unsightly 25 tries (68% succe s rate). Bader has long been a glove-first option in center, and at least as far as Statcast is concerned, thats what he remains. Statcast credits him with a hefty 10 Outs Above Average thanks to good to great rankings in terms of sprint speed (74th percentile), arm strength (87th percentile) and range (96th percentile). Other metrics are more bearish, with Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating pegging him close to average. That drop in DRS isnt going to impact Bader Kaleb Ort Jersey much. He has a strong defensive reputation, and most clubs will look at the defensive tools and his overall track record and still count him as a plus defender. Bader is having a better offensive year than he did in 2023, after which he agreed to a one-year, $10.5MM deal with the Mets. Its po sible he could secure a multi-year deal this time around. (33) Hernandez can play anywhere, but center has been his best defensive position. Hes a plus defender there by all accounts, though the Dodgers havent used him there much this year, instead deferring to players with more offensive upside (e.g. , ). Hernandez isnt going to land a job as someones everyday center fielder after hitting .219/.272/.362 this year, but his versatility and beloved clubhouse presence could net him a big league deal as a bench player. (34) Only two players in baseball, regardle s of position, have more than Taylors 55 Defensive Runs Saved over the past four seasons ( , ). Only five have a higher total of Outs Above Average (Hayes, Gimenez, , , ). Defense doesnt get better than this. That said, after popping a career-high 21 homers with the 2023 Twins, Taylor was met with a frigid free agent market. He eventually landed in Pittsburgh on a one-year deal and has stumbled to the worst offensive performance of his career, hitting just .193/.253/.290 in 300 plate appearances. The glove is elite, and theres clear power in Taylors bat, so he could still land another big league deal this offseason. Depth Candidates (30) Hampson signed a $2MM deal with the Royals last winter but has turned in just a .227/.271/.300 slash without a homer in 220 plate appearances. He can run and plays solid defense all over the infield and outfield, but his lack of offense will probably limit him to a minor league deal. (35) Released by the Yankees early in the 2023 season, Hicks had a resurgence in Baltimore when he hit .275/.381/.425 in 226 plate appearances as an Oriole last year. That landed him a big league roster spot with the Angels, but he opened the season in a .140/.222/.193 funk (63 plate appearances) and was quickly released. He hasnt signed elsewhere since. If Hicks wants to keep playing, hell need to take a minor league deal. (34) Jankowski gave the 23 World Series Champions roughly average offense and quality glovework acro s all three outfield spots, but his bat fell flat in his 2024 return to the Rangers. Hes hit just .209/.269/.253 through 99 games and 197 plate appearances. Jankowski went unclaimed on outright waivers in late August and will be looking at a minor league deal this winter. (32) Twice traded in the offseason, Margot went from Tampa Bay to Los Angeles and from the Dodgers to the Twins, with both the Rays and Dodgers taking on portions of his salary along the way. Margot has hit lefties in Minnesota but hasnt done much else well, with an overall .239/.293/.339 slash on the season. His contract has a $12MM club option with a $4MM buyout, and the Rays are on the hook for that buyout under the terms of his original trade to Los Angeles. Hell certainly be bought out and, like most of the other depth candidates on this list, figures to sign a minor league deal in the offseason. (37) Pham has little busine s playing center field in 2024, but the White Sox trotted him out there for 223 innings out of nece sity. Hell be viewed as an emergency option there by most teams. Pham is hitting .251/.311/.376 on the season below-average production overall. Pham could still land a small one-year deal or another minor league deal with a decent base salary if he plans to continue playing into his age-37 season. (32) Slater has more experience in center than at any other individual position in the majors, but he draws better defensive ratings in the outfield corners. Hes also played first base for a couple hundred innings and had brief cameos at second base and third base. Typically a menace to left-handed pitchers (career .270/.363/.438), Slaters output against southpaws has tanked in 2024 (.181/.305/.224). Hes hitting only .205/.317/.263 on the whole and will presumably be limited to minor league offers this winter. Mauricio Dubon Jersey