MLB Free Agent Rankings: Way-too-early 2020-21 free agency predictions, including where Mookie Betts and others wind up

With players like Gerrit Cole and Anthony Rendon set to hit the open market, the 2019-20 offseason promises to be chock full of big free-agent rumors and signings. Even in a frigid spending climate, guys like Cole and Rendon (and Madison Bumgarner, et al) will be too good to resist. Here are our latest 2019-20 MLB Free Agent Power Rankings.

Now that the 2019 regular season is winding down and postseason is right around the corner, it's time to hit pause on our weekly free-agent stock updates, and instead look ahead one year. The 2020-21 class is top heavy with several elite players -- position players, mostly -- but also solid depth throughout. It looks deeper than this winter's class, that's for sure.

Of course, a lot can and will change in two years. It wasn't too long ago that fans (and teams) were looking forward to Felix Hernandez, Clayton Kershaw and Justin Verlander all become free agents in their primes in the same offseason. Then all three signed contract extensions and never actually became free agents. So it goes.

So, with the caveat that the look of the class will change dramatically over the next 12 months, here is our super early ranking of the best players scheduled to hit free agency after the 2020 season. Feel free to bookmark this page and come back for laughs next year.

2020-21 MLB Free Agents: Early Rankings

1	Mookie Betts Boston Red Sox RF
2021 season age: 28 With all due respect to Manny Machado and Bryce Harper, Mookie Betts is poised to be the best free-agent position player since peak Alex Rodriguez. Mookie does it all. He hits for average and power, he gets on base, he doesn't strike out excessively, he plays elite defense, and he runs the bases at a very high level. There are no glaring weaknesses in his game. Also, Betts will play the entire 2021 regular season at age 28, so he's right smack in the prime of his career. Earlier this year Betts made it clear he will not sell himself short with his next contract. He's rejected extension offers from the Red Sox (reportedly seven years and $200 million in 2017) and is instead banking record arbitration salaries. Given his age, his skill set, and the fact he is extremely marketable, Betts should clear $300 million with ease next offseason. Early contract prediction: Red Sox, 10 years and $350 million (new MLB record)
2	J.T. Realmuto Philadelphia Phillies C
2021 season age: 30 Reports indicate the Phillies and catcher J.T. Realmuto will discuss a contract extension this offseason and I think there's a pretty good chance he signs a new long-term deal before he ever becomes a free agent. Realmuto is on the short list of the game's best catchers and a strong case can be made he is the most well-rounded backstop in baseball. He provides big value both at the plate and behind it, and he'll play the entire 2021 season at age 30, so he's still in his prime. Early contract prediction: Phillies, 5 years and $85 million (extension before free agency)
3	Marcus Semien Oakland Athletics SS
2021 season age: 30 I'm not sure there's a better example of a player making drastic improvements to his game through hard work than Marcus Semien. The Athletics shortstop has transformed himself from the game's worst defensive infielder a few years ago into a legitimate Gold Glove candidate this year, and he can hit too. I have some questions about what Semien's offense will look like with an un-juiced ball, but the total package is really good, plus he brings captain-caliber leadership skills to the table. Early contract prediction: Phillies, 4 years and $68 million
4	George Springer Houston Astros CF
2021 season age: 31 I gotta say, George Springer will be a heck of a consolation prize for a team that is unable to sign Betts. The Astros center fielder has cut down on his strikeouts over the years and he's now a serious power and on-base threat with very good defense. Springer is athletic enough to man center field another few years, and when time comes to shift to a corner, he has the skills to remain a very good defensive outfielder. On top of all that, Springer's a genuinely great dude who would improve any clubhouse culture. Early contract prediction: Giants, 4 years and $72 million
5	Marcus Stroman New York Mets SP
2021 season age: 30 There is no no-doubt ace set to hit free agency next year. Blue Jays-turned-Mets righty Marcus Stroman is the best of the bunch because his injury history is about as clean as it gets for a pitcher his age -- I'm not going to hold the fluke torn ACL in 2015 against him -- and he boasts an elite skill in his ground ball ability. He may not have the strikeout rates teams love, but Stroman can spin the ball and keep it on the ground, and he's a very hard-worker. He's a guy clubs will feel safe investing in. Early contract prediction: Mets, 4 years and $72 million (he'll test free agency but wind up back in New York)
6	Trevor Bauer Cincinnati Reds SP
2021 season age: 30 Reds righty Trevor Bauer has famously said he will only sign one-year contracts when he becomes a free agent, and I'm sure that will interest many teams. There's nothing teams love more than high-performance on short-term contracts. Bauer has ace potential but he's pitched like an ace for only about four months in his career (early 2018). Still, that potential pays. Every team will think they can be the team to unlock it. It is a tale as old as time when it comes to talented but inconsistent pitchers. Early contract prediction: Padres, 1 year and $22 million
7	James Paxton New York Yankees SP
2021 season age: 32 Yankees southpaw James Paxton will have a lot working against him in free agency. He has a long and diverse injury history -- he seems to hurt a new body part each year -- and he's been pretty inconsistent throughout this career, plus he'll play the entire 2021 season at age 32, which is not a great age to begin a big free agent contract from the team's perspective. That said, hard-throwing and high-strikeout lefties sure are hard to find, and few southpaws do it better than Paxton. Early contract prediction: Twins, 3 years and $45 million
8	Joc Pederson Los Angeles Dodgers LF
2021 season age: 29 Yes, Dodgers outfielder Joc Pederson is pretty much unplayable against lefties, but he is a high-end platoon option against righties, and he can plausibly play center field. Also, he'll be 28 on Opening Day 2021 and spend most of the season at age 29, and that's a pretty good age to become a free agent. Whichever team signs him will be getting several peak years. Pederson's a Grade-A makeup guy and a candidate to get a larger contract than everyone expects in two years. Early contract prediction: Nationals, 4 years and $60 million
9	Charlie Morton Tampa Bay Rays SP
2021 season age: 37 There's a pretty good chance Rays righty Charlie Morton will call it a career when his current two-year contract expires. He reportedly mulled over retirement this past winter, and in two years he'll have that much more time spent away from his family. It's also worth noting his contract includes a $15 million vesting option for 2021, so Morton might not even become a free agent. If he does though, teams will line up to give him a one-year contract and hope for another year of high-end performance. Early contract prediction: Astros, 1 year and $12 million (they never should've let him go in the first place)
10	DJ LeMahieu New York Yankees 2B
2021 season age: 32 Will he ever hit like this again? No, probably not, but Yankees infielder DJ LeMahieu is an exit velocity darling with elite bat-to-ball skills, and this year he showed he has no problem moving all around the infield. He's played great defense at second and third base, and a more than passable first base as well. LeMahieu doing what he's done in New York will make prospective employers feel confident he can handle whatever's thrown at him. Early contract prediction: Yankees, 2 years and $36 million (extension before free agency)