It’s more common than it may seem. Just because a player is hurt and will miss an entire season, teams are willing to pay to lock him up early. We saw the New York Mets pay Drew Smith this past year to rehab only to non-tender him at season’s end. They did the same with Adbert Alzolay, penciling him in as a bullpen option for this coming season.
The Mets may have a few more players fitting this description already. Tylor Megill and Reed Garrett were tendered contracts by the Mets despite knowing they won’t pitch in 2026 outside of some sort of miracle recovery.