HOUSTON -- The Astros extended qualifying offers to shortstop Carlos Correa and pitcher Justin Verlander on Sunday. The players have 10 days to accept or reject the offer, though it’s a slam dunk that Correa will reject it as he explores free agency.

The qualifying offer is a one-year offer worth the mean salary of MLB’s 125 highest-paid players. This value changes by the year. For the 2021-22 offseason, the value is $18.4 million.

If Correa or Verlander accept the qualifying offer, they would be considered a signed player for 2022 and make $18.4 million; if they reject it, they can sign with any team, including the Astros. Should Correa or Verlander reject the offer and sign with another club, the Astros would receive a compensatory pick in next year’s MLB Draft.

Correa, 27, will be one of the biggest names on the free-agent market this winter. He broke off negotiations with the Astros prior to the start of the regular season after turning down offers of six years and $120 million and five years and $125 million in the spring. KRIV-TV in Houston reported Saturday that the Astros recently offered a five-year, $160 million contract.

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Verlander could be inclined to accept the qualifying offer after missing nearly two full seasons with an arm injury. Verlander injured his elbow after his first start of the 2020 season and tried to make a comeback later in the year before tearing his ulnar collateral ligament and requiring Tommy John surgery. He missed the entire 2021 season.

At 38 and coming off a significant injury, Verlander could choose to accept Houston’s offer and pitch one year to re-establish himself and prove that he’s healthy.

Veteran starter Zack Greinke received a qualifying offer from the Dodgers in 2015 and turned it down. Players can only be given a qualifying offer once.