On Thursday afternoon, the New York Yankees defied all previous indicators and presented outfielder Trent Grisham with the qualifying offer coming off a career year. That means, if Grisham so chooses, he can take the Yankees' $22 million for one year and end his free agency cycle early. The QO isn't exactly like the franchise tag, but it does make open-market shocking a lot more difficult; some mid-tier teams that might've had interest in a three-year Grisham deal might not anymore, now that they are required to surrender a draft pick to sign him.
There's also a good chance that $22 million is a higher AAV than he receives on any multi-year deal, with or without the offer.