This offseason featured two of MLB’s most talented free agents ever, and yet the class as a whole felt weak. Bryce Harper and Manny Machado were exceptional, and Patrick Corbin did alright for himself, but it was a meager showing compared to what had been anticipated eagerly since at least 2015. That came off a winter where 13 free agents commanded deals guaranteeing $70 million or more, including seven over $100 million. This year, just three eclipsed either number - the names listed above.
The way teams have stifled the market has played a role in that shift, assuredly, but it’s also become a self-fulfilling prophecy.