Top Landing Spots for Free Agent Ty France

If you’d asked someone before the 2026 season to predict who would lead the San Diego Padres in both slugging percentage and wRC+, you’d have probably gotten some common answers. Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, and Jackson Merrill would likely have garnered the majority of votes.

Anyone predicting one of those three players would have ended up being proven wrong. Instead, among players who accumulated at least five plate appearances last season, the team’s leader in both slugging percentage (.502) and wRC+ (141) wound up being none other than first baseman Ty France.

It’s hard to blame anyone who wouldn’t have picked France. Returning to the team that drafted him in 2015 and with which he made his MLB debut, the 32-year-old was coming off a season in which he posted a below-average 92 wRC+ and .360 slugging percentage over 138 games with the Twins and Blue Jays.

France wasn’t even guaranteed a spot in the majors after that performance. When the Padres signed him in February, it was to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training and a $1.35 million salary if he made the team. A .306 average and .862 OPS in 19 Cactus League games made that happen.

While San Diego’s offense sputtered for a good portion of the year, sitting tied for 24th in MLB at 4.17 runs per game through the end of July, France stayed consistent at the plate, ending the season with a .295/.363/.502 slash line, 24 doubles, 21 homers, and 72 RBIs in 133 games.

He also had an excellent season in the field for the Padres, following up on his 2025 Gold Glove campaign. While he didn’t repeat in 2026, he was a finalist for the award at first base, thanks to his 15 defensive runs saved, seven outs above average, and 10 fielding run value at the position.

Just nine months ago, France wasn’t sure if he’d start the season in the minors or the majors. Now, after putting up arguably the best season of his career, France has the opportunity to choose where he’ll spend 2027.

Free Agent Profile: Ty France

• Age in 2027: 32
• 2026 Stats: 133 G, .295/.363/.502, 21 HR, 72 RBI, 141 wRC+, 3.6 fWAR
• 2026 Salary: $1.35 million

Contract Projection

• Contract Length Expectation: 2-3 years

• Expected AAV: $12-17 million

France has a number of interesting factors surrounding his free agency campaign. His career wRC+ of 114 shows that he’s a solid hitter overall, yet he had two subpar seasons in 2024 and 2025 that led to him accepting the aforementioned minor league deal.

One might not consider him a prototypical power-hitting first baseman, with 102 homers in 973 career MLB games and only two seasons of 20-plus home runs. Yet his .414 career slugging percentage isn’t far off the league average of .436 at the position last year, which also saw a leaguewide 114 wRC+ that matches his career mark.

There is also the Gold Glove-caliber defense that France has brought over the past two years. Getting an above-average offensive first baseman is one thing, but adding that level of defense greatly increases his value.

Yet, France isn’t expected to command a premium price, likely because he’s coming off that bounce-back season and is no longer on the better side of 30. Still, for a player with France’s profile, an average annual value in the mid-teens is plenty affordable for many teams.

He also happens to be the top right-handed-hitting first baseman on the market, and there are several teams that could use just that. From teams looking to get back to the playoffs to one that will be trying to make a deeper run next year, here’s who is most likely to add France to the mix.

Free Agent Landing Spots for Ty France

Arizona Diamondbacks

If anyone needs help at the first base position, it’s the Diamondbacks. They had the lowest wRC+ at the position by far at just 74, nine points below the next-lowest team in MLB, and had the second-lowest fWAR at -0.9 per FanGraphs.

Early last year, it looked like Arizona was going to get by just fine at the position. Journeyman Ildemaro Vargas, the team’s leader in games played at first base, started the season as hot as anyone at the plate, hitting .340 with a .902 OPS through his first 37 games.

However, Vargas would cool off significantly after that, and between him, sophomore Tim Tawa, and others, the offensive production at the position left much to be desired. Vargas is now a free agent, and the future at the position isn’t exactly clear.

Much of Tawa’s value comes from his defensive flexibility, so the Diamondbacks may not be looking to pencil him in as their regular first baseman. Down on the farm, Manuel Pena had an excellent year with 31 homers and a .900 OPS, but just 52 of those games came at Triple-A, and he’s only 22. 2023 second-rounder LuJames Groover has trended more toward third base in recent seasons.

Signing France could give Arizona more time to figure out a long-term plan at first base. And if Pena were to eventually prove ready for the jump to MLB, he could work in a lefty-righty tandem with France while adjusting to his new role.

New York Mets

Equally woeful at the first base position during the 2026 season were the Mets. Their first basemen finished just above the last-place Diamondbacks in wRC+ at 85 and were dead last in MLB in fWAR at -1.4.

The lack of production from New York’s first basemen wasn’t just at the plate, but in the field as well. The group was tied for second-to-last in fielding run value at a combined -11 and was bottom of the barrel in outs above average at -15.

Jared Young got a majority of the starts at first base and had a decent .266 average and 111 wRC+, but he also had just 29 extra-base hits in 103 games. His backup, Mark Vientos, disappointed in his fifth season as a big leaguer, posting a .212 average, 78 wRC+, and -1.1 fWAR.

The Mets could roll with Young at the position once again, hoping he builds off his 2026 season. But this is a team that continues to underachieve despite a massive payroll and is coming off a 74-88 season that placed last in the division. “Hope” shouldn’t be the strategy for them this offseason.

Similarly to the Diamondbacks above, they could bring France in and platoon him with Young, providing a more solid plan at the position. He would also be a good veteran presence to have among the young, talented players on the Mets’ roster.

Washington Nationals

For a while, it felt like this might be the year the young Nationals team finally took a step forward. But despite having the third-best offense in baseball at 5.077 runs per game, they’d finish just above the Mets in the NL East with a 77-85 record.

Unlike the previous two teams, Washington actually got some pretty good production at first base last year. Most of that came from Luis Garcia Jr., who hit .283 with a 133 wRC+ and 23 homers in 104 games. He is no longer around, though, after being moved to the Yankees at last year’s trade deadline.

Taking over many of the reps there the rest of the way was Andres Chaparro, who opened a lot of eyes toward the end of the year. In his 83-game sample in 2026, he slugged his way to a 141 wRC+ with 13 doubles, 13 homers, and 39 runs batted in.

As good as he was at the plate, Chaparro was not quite as impressive in the field. He had negative advanced metrics across the board, with -4 DRS, -4 OAA, and -3 FRV in only 291.2 innings at first base last season.

Bringing in France would greatly improve the defense at the position and allow Chaparro to instead continue his mashing as a designated hitter. Add some better pitching on top of that, and maybe Washington finds its way to the playoffs for the first time in eight years.

Minnesota Twins

The Twins had a pretty similar season to the Nationals in 2026 on the surface. Minnesota also had a top-ten offense by runs per game (4.56, T-9th) and paired it with a bottom-ten pitching staff by ERA (4.56, 25th). They even finished with matching 77-85 records.

The Twins didn’t get much of that run production from the first base position, though. The position’s combined 87 wRC+ was the third-worst in MLB, and its 65 runs batted in were second-to-last.

Former first overall pick Royce Lewis got the lion’s share of the work at first in 2026. Though he finally fought off injuries enough to play in a career-high 125 games last year, he hit just .227 with an 85 wRC+ along the way. He’s entering his final arbitration year with the only organization for which he’s ever played.

Kody Clemens got most of the rest of the work at first and had the best year of his young career so far, posting career highs with a 108 wRC+, 22 doubles, 27 homers, and 74 RBIs. Like Tawa above, though, the Twins used him in a utility role, as he played at least 10 games at five different positions last year.

With Pablo Lopez and David Festa returning from injury in 2027, the Twins have a prime opportunity to take advantage of a perennially soft AL Central and make a run if they play their cards right this offseason. A reunion with France, who played 101 games for them in 2025, could help keep a strong offense rolling.

Cleveland Guardians

Speaking of the AL Central, all roads to the top of that division go through the Guardians. They were once again the class of the Midwest on the AL side, having won their third consecutive division title and eighth in the last 11 seasons.

The formula tends to be the same each year: put forth a powerful pitching staff and support it with just enough offense to win games. Last year’s offense followed suit, scoring the seventh-fewest runs per game in MLB at 4.16.

Kyle Manzardo and Rhys Hoskins were entrusted with most of the work at first base, but neither hit above .215 or posted an OPS over .684 on the season. The Guardians added Nathaniel Lowe to the mix at the trade deadline, but he didn’t do much better (.226 average, .650 OPS).

While Cleveland could sign France for an immediate offensive upgrade at first base, there’s a wild card here in the form of Ralphy Velazquez. Just Baseball’s 21st overall prospect reached Triple-A for the first time last year and slashed an impressive .278/.363/.541 with a 133 wRC+ and 22 homers in just 85 games.

Velazquez is also just 21, and the Guardians may want to give him just a little bit more seasoning at Triple-A. They could instead opt to bring in France this offseason and then pair him with Velazquez once he’s ready, forming what might be a very formidable duo at first base.