Some say that age is “just a number,” but it’s certainly an important one to teams evaluating their options on the free-agent market.

That’s because, to state the obvious, age is a key factor to consider when projecting player performance over the life of a contract. Take 2024, for example. There were 115 players this past season who collected at least 3 Wins Above Replacement (WAR), per Baseball-Reference. Of those, 64% were in their age-29 season or younger, 84% were in their age-31 season or younger and 97% (all but three) were in their age-34 season or younger.

That’s certainly not to say that age is everything. After all, one of those few highly productive 35-year-olds was NL Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale (6.2 bWAR). But it’s obviously something to take into account -- and something that has a lot to do with the length of the contract that interested teams are willing to offer.

So as we wait for the Hot Stove to fully ignite, let’s take a look at this intriguing free-agent class in terms of the best player at each age. (And by that we mean their seasonal age for 2025.)

Age 23: Roki Sasaki, RHP
Sasaki is not technically a free agent yet, but his NPB team, the Chiba Lotte Marines, is expected to post him by the Dec. 15 deadline, thereby making him available for bids from all 30 teams. Sasaki’s move to MLB has been hotly anticipated, in large part due to his ace-level arsenal and superb results in Japan. Coming over now limits Sasaki’s earning power because at less than 25 years old, he will be subject to international amateur bonus pool restrictions. But it also means he can begin his career at an age when many prospects are still in the Minors. In fact, Sasaki will be three years younger than Yankees pitcher Luis Gil, the 2024 AL Rookie of the Year, was this past season.

No other free agent available this offseason will be younger than 26 in 2025.

• The latest Roki Sasaki rumors

Age 26: Juan Soto, OF
An elite free agent entering his age-26 season is not unprecedented, but it is quite rare. Six years ago, Bryce Harper and Manny Machado fit that description. And in 2001, Alex Rodriguez was just 25 in his first season after signing with the Rangers. But the examples are few and far between, because it requires reaching the Majors as a teenager and sticking there. When it happens, though? It tends to lead to record-breaking contracts.

That may well happen for Soto, who combines two incredibly attractive qualities: 1) Being one of the game’s elite hitters, year after year. 2) Being young enough that he could quite reasonably be at his peak for several more seasons -- something that is rarely the case for free agents.

• The latest Juan Soto rumors

Age 27: Michael Soroka, RHP
True, there are few 27-year-old free agents. But if you looked at Soroka’s 2024 results (0-10 with a 4.74 ERA for the White Sox) and dismissed this pick as entirely about a lack of alternatives, think again. As our Mike Petriello pointed out, Soroka looked like an entirely different pitcher after moving to the bullpen midseason.

Age 28: Gleyber Torres, 2B
Because he was producing in a regular role for the Yankees as a 21-year-old back in 2018, Torres was able to become a free agent at a younger age than any prominent position player besides Soto. Torres won’t even reach his 30s until the 2027 season, giving clubs a reason to bet on his upside despite his relatively underwhelming contract year.

Age 29: Willy Adames, SS
Adames had a winding road to free agency, signing with the Tigers as an amateur free agent way back in 2012 before bouncing to the Rays and Brewers via trade. While Adames reportedly has expressed a willingness to move to a different infield position, his relatively young age and solid defense should also inspire confidence that he could stay at shortstop for at least a few more seasons.

• The latest Willy Adames rumors

Age 30: Corbin Burnes, RHP
Now we’re getting to the sweet spot for free agents, with players most commonly getting to that point (for the first time, at least) in their early 30s. Some teams might have concern that Burnes already has declined some from his 2021-22 peak -- at least in terms of missing bats and piling up strikeouts -- but his continued durability and effectiveness still makes him an elite free-agent starter.

• Burnes is the best in MLB at one thing -- and the worst at another

Age 31: Alex Bregman, 3B
We easily could have opted for left-hander Max Fried here, but Bregman stands out as one of the few premium infield options available on the market. That being said, Bregman’s free-agent case would have been even stronger had he reached this point after the 2022 season as originally scheduled. However, an extension Bregman inked with the Astros back in March '19 pushed that back by two years. While Bregman’s productivity hasn’t waned much during that span, he is now on the other side of 30, with a few troubling statistical indicators in his profile, such as a walk rate that tumbled dramatically from '23 to ‘24.

Age 32: Teoscar Hernández, OF
This would have been Blake Snell, but the left-hander is now off the board after faring much better in free agency than he did one year ago. While Hernández won't be approaching Snell's contract, he too should improve significantly on a deal he signed last offseason. In his case, he was coming off a subpar season with the Mariners, having struggled mightily at pitcher-friendly T-Mobile Park. Hernández thrived after inking a one-year deal with the Dodgers, however, and was a rock in the middle of the World Series champs' lineup all season while smashing 33 homers. His second foray into the open market should result in a longer-term commitment.

Age 33: Sean Manaea, LHP
Speaking of southpaws with stronger free-agent cases than last year, Manaea is actually on the open market for the third consecutive offseason. He signed with the Giants for 2023, and after an uneven campaign in San Francisco, jumped to the Mets in January. It was in Queens where Manaea -- inspired by Sale's low arm slot -- transformed himself and appeared to unlock another level of performance. So even headed into Manaea’s age-33 season, there is reason to believe the best might be still to come.

Age 34: Christian Walker, 1B
Why is Walker only getting his first crack at free agency now? A college Draft pick by the Orioles, Walker debuted in the Majors as a 23-year-old in 2014 but collected only 99 MLB plate appearances (with a 79 OPS+) over the next five years. During that time, he was selected off waivers three times and languished at Triple-A. It wasn’t until the D-backs traded Paul Goldschmidt after the '18 season that a then-28-year-old Walker got a real opportunity to rack up service time. He ran with it, and now he's the rare 34-year-old first baseman who should do quite well in free agency.

Age 35: Nathan Eovaldi, RHP
Eovaldi's unique path is an exception to the typical aging curve. Despite debuting with the Dodgers as a 21-year-old in 2011, Eovaldi managed only 9.1 bWAR in his 20s as he battled injuries and inconsistency. In contrast, the first five seasons of Eovaldi’s 30s have produced 12.4 bWAR, as he has settled in as a relatively durable and consistent veteran rotation option (with an enviable postseason track record). In each of those five seasons, Eovaldi’s ERA has fallen between 3.63 and 3.87.

Age 36: Jose Quintana, LHP
In 2024, just four position players age 36 or older had enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title. Just two pitchers that old qualified for the ERA title, and only five logged even 100 innings. So it’s rare for anyone this age to be a significant factor at the Major League level, but Quintana -- the classic “crafty lefty” -- certainly has a chance to do so. Despite ninth percentile fastball velocity and an 18th percentile K-rate, he delivered the Mets a 3.75 ERA (105 ERA+) in 170 1/3 innings in 2024.

Age 37: Blake Treinen, RHP
Treinen didn’t throw a pitch in the Majors until he was nearing his 26th birthday in 2014. This is now his third time as a free agent, and it could well be his third time signing with the Dodgers, with whom he has served as a key bullpen piece on two championship teams. While injuries have interrupted Treinen’s time in L.A., when healthy he has posted a 2.29 ERA over 154 regular-season appearances there.

Age 38: Kirby Yates, RHP
By this point, our choices are overwhelmingly pitchers, and Yates stands out after an All-MLB Second Team campaign that saw him save 33 games for the Rangers with a 1.17 ERA. This will be Yates’ fourth time signing as a free agent, but the first time he has enjoyed the opportunity to do so while coming off a healthy, dominant season. While Yates put together two great years for the 2018-19 Padres, he didn’t hit the open market until after the shortened '20 season, when the pandemic and a right elbow injury limited him to six ineffective appearances.

Age 39: Carlos Santana, 1B
Santana just played 150 games at age 38, joining the 36-year-old Goldschmidt as the only players older than 34 to reach that target. Not only that, but Santana became the oldest position player to win his first career Gold Glove Award after leading MLB first basemen with 14 Outs Above Average. So it figures that Santana -- whose 2,080 career games ranks second to Andrew McCutchen among active players -- will find a place to play his 16th MLB season.

Age 40: Max Scherzer, RHP
Simply getting the opportunity to compete in the Majors past your 40th birthday is a sign of an impressive career. Scherzer actually did that already, starting two games for the Rangers after turning 40 on July 27, although injuries kept him out for most of the final two months of the season. While Scherzer had a difficult time staying on the mound in 2024, he has stated that he wants to return for an 18th MLB season. Given his track record, and the fact that he still has been reasonably effective when healthy over the past couple of seasons, he surely will get a shot at polishing up his likely Hall of Fame resume.

Age 41: Charlie Morton, RHP
Like Eovaldi, Morton didn’t see his career fully bloom until he was in his 30s. In fact, the turning point came the first time he was a free agent, when he signed with the Astros ahead of his age-33 season in 2017. Before that point, Morton had been below replacement level (-0.7 bWAR) over 893 innings. Since then: 20.2 bWAR in 1,232 2/3 innings. Even though Morton took a step back in '24, he provided the Braves with 165 1/3 roughly league-average innings.

Age 42: Justin Verlander, RHP
In 2024, Verlander was far less effective (72 ERA+) than he had been in any season since he debuted with two ineffective outings for the 2005 Tigers. The Astros left him off their postseason roster. But, like his two-time former teammate Scherzer, Verlander was not deterred. He wants to pitch in '25, which would be his 20th season, looking to build on his 262 career wins (and two World Series titles). Father Time comes for everyone, even the all-time greats. But would you put it past Verlander to hold him at bay for a bit longer?