MLB and the MLBPA have set the qualifying offer for free agents this season at $17.2M, the highest amount since the program’s introduction following the '12 season, and the largest annual increase to date. The total, up from $15.8M last year and $15.3M in '14, has been the amount for a one-year contract that teams must offer free agents in order to gain draft-pick compensation should they sign elsewhere. The figure is determined by the average annual value of the top 125 major league contracts, so the accelerating amount of the qualifying offer is an indicator of baseball’s fiscal growth. It is not yet known whether qualifying offers this offseason will again work the same way or face changes, as the league and union are still in the midst of collective bargaining. The current CBA expires Dec. 1, but sources said at least the bulk of the current offer and compensation structure is likely to remain in place. No qualifying offer had been accepted by a player until last offseason, when Orioles C Matt Wieters, Astros CF Colby Rasmus and Dodgers P Brett Anderson each took one. Players becoming free agents must have spent the entire season with one club to be eligible for the qualifying offer.
