There are always the few big names that dominate the winter -- this past offseason, it was all about Shohei Ohtani. There isn't as much attention paid to the lower-ranked free agents, but as this season has shown us, those players can make the largest impacts on their respective teams or put up some of the more impressive numbers.
Case in point: Despite being signed only to one-year deals before this season, Teoscar Hernandez and Jurickson Profar are likely to be named starting outfielders for the National League in this season's All-Star Game.
Hernandez was an afterthought when the Los Angeles Dodgers signed him in January -- after all, they had already committed more than a billion dollars combined for Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. They signed Hernandez for $23.5 million, with $8.5 million of that deferred starting in 2030. Think of all the teams struggling for outfield offense in 2024: Any team could have afforded that deal. Hernandez has been outstanding, a much-needed right-handed batter in the middle of the Dodgers' lineup while on pace for 36 home runs and over 100 RBIs.
Profar was even more of an afterthought after he was one of the worst everyday players in the majors last season with the Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres. Needing outfield depth, the Padres re-signed him to a $1 million deal -- and he's come through in a huge way, including a walk-off hit on Monday and belting his second grand slam of the season on Tuesday night. Shockingly, he's battling Ohtani for the NL lead in batting average and tops all NL outfielders in wRC+.
Hernandez was ranked No. 15 on Kiley McDaniel's list of top free agents entering this past offseason, while Profar was unranked. Let's take a look at some of the big wins among these second-tier free agents, in order of their ranking on McDaniel's list.