The Milwaukee Brewers have been crowned the 2026 World Series champions and the 2026-27 offseason is already underway. More than 100 players became free agents the day after the World Series ended, and soon teams will have to make decisions about contract options and qualifying offers. The qualifying offer (QO) entitles teams to draft-pick compensation in the event that they lose a free agent to another team.
The QO is a one-year deal set at the average of the top 125 salaries in baseball. This offseason, it's worth a record $23.15 million, according to the New York Post. That is up from $22.025 million last year, $21.05 million the year before, and $20.325 million the year before that.
Teams have until five days after the end of the World Series to tender their free agents the QO, and players who receive it then have until 4 p.m. ET on Nov. 17 to accept or reject. Players who accept the QO remain with their team and cannot be traded without their consent until June 15.
Players who reject the QO become free agents with draft-pick compensation attached. The process is, but the decisions aren't always. With that in mind, let's run down this offseason's QO candidates, as well as explain the draft-pick compensation rules.
Yes, the QO is still a thing this offseason. The collective bargaining agreement expires at 11:59 p.m. ET on Dec. 1, and the next CBA could change the QO rules, maybe even eliminate it entirely.
That said, until that happens, the QO remains in place. Decisions to tender the QO (made by the team) and decisions to accept or reject the QO (made by the player) are due before the CBA expires. Once upon a time, teams that lost an eligible free agent received a compensation draft pick after the first round.
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