Top Landing Spots for Free Agent Adrian Morejón

One of the most intriguing pitchers on the MLB free agent market is Adrian Morejón, a left-handed reliever who has pitched for the San Diego Padres since 2019 and is a first-time free agent. Morejón is the second-best left-handed pitcher on the market, behind two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal, and should generate plenty of interest in free agency.

After posting a 2.83 ERA across 86 innings of work in 2026, Morejón recorded the fourth-highest fWAR among primary relievers (2.8) and the highest mark of any left-handed reliever. With an arsenal that generates one of the highest groundball rates among relievers, paired with the ability to strike out more than 30% of opposing hitters, Morejón is going to be one of the most intriguing names on the market this offseason.

While Morejón has spent nearly his entire MLB career as a high-leverage reliever, there is potential for him to be signed as a starting pitcher. He has consistently been relied upon for more than an inning of work, and his pitch arsenal could translate very well to a starting role.

His free agency will be one of the most interesting storylines in baseball this offseason, as he’s arguably the best relief pitcher on the market. Potential destinations will depend on whether he decides to pursue a future as a starter or continue as a reliever, but either way, he should find plenty of success and a solid contract in whichever role he takes on.

Free Agent Profile: Adrian Morejón

• Age in 2027: 28

• 2026 Stats: 76 G, 2.83 ERA, 2.37 FIP, 86.0 IP, 2.8 fWAR

• 2026 Salary: $3.9 million

• Qualifying Offer Eligibility: Yes (Offered by SD)

Contract Projection

• Contract Length Expectation: 3-5 years

• Expected AAV: $18-20 million

The San Diego Padres have extended a qualifying offer to Morejón (one year, $23.15 million), meaning he can either accept the one-year deal to remain in San Diego or provide the Padres with a compensatory draft pick if he signs elsewhere. Morejón is likely to test the market in hopes of landing a long-term deal and has even been rumored to be transitioning to a starting pitcher.

San Diego probably should’ve inked Morejón to an extension to avoid losing him in free agency, but now his future lies in the balance. There are several teams that could be vying for his services this offseason, some of which may even be more appealing than his longtime employer.

Free Agent Landing Spots for Adrian Morejón

San Diego Padres

Morejón has been in the Padres organization ever since signing with them as an international free agent in 2017. He has thrown nearly 300 career innings for San Diego and has registered three consecutive seasons with 60+ appearances and an ERA below 3.00, making him a source of great stability for the bullpen.

Alongside the likes of Mason Miller, Jeremiah Estrada, and others, Morejón was a crucial part of the league’s best bullpen in 2026. Padres relievers racked up a total of 8.9 fWAR, leading all other teams by at least 0.9 fWAR while throwing the fourth-most innings of any bullpen in MLB.

Not only do the Padres have a decent chance to sign him to a long-term deal, but they also stand to gain a draft pick through their qualifying offer if Morejón decides to leave town. San Diego really needs to do its part to keep Morejón a Padre, because the bullpen loses a lot of stability without him.

If he chooses to become a starter, he becomes even more valuable to the Padres, who had the 27th-best fWAR from their starting pitchers (6.1) this season and only finished ahead of the Colorado Rockies among National League teams. If Morejón can transition into a lockdown starting option for San Diego, the team becomes a whole lot more well-rounded and intimidating.

It’d be absolutely understandable for Morejón to want to test the open market and see what other offers he can get, but when it comes to pitching for one of the best staffs in baseball, his best option might be to stay put in San Diego.

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees had one of the best bullpens in all of baseball in 2026 thanks to the performances of Brent Headrick, David Bednar, and Paul Blackburn, to name a few. With the latter two pitchers becoming free agents, New York’s pen is in dire need of an additional arm. Bringing in Morejón to give themselves two of the top left-handed relievers in baseball is a power play that the Yankees could certainly pull off.

In recent memory, the Yankees have spared no expense to ensure they have elite arms at the back end of their bullpen (Aroldis Chapman, Devin Williams, Bednar, etc.), so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them be active in the Morejón sweepstakes. New York was linked to Morejón dating back to the 2026 trade deadline, so clearly there’s already some interest there.

The Yankees have always been a suitable destination for relief pitchers, especially ones with high groundball rates like Morejón. Tim Hill and Paul Blackburn are examples of pitchers who have found success in New York. The Yankees have one of the most potent offenses in the league and can provide Morejón, as well as many other free agents, with the allure of playing for the most successful franchise in MLB history.

New York has some money coming off its books with Jazz Chisholm Jr., Paul Goldschmidt, and the two aforementioned relievers, Bednar and Blackburn, so expect the Yankees to be quite active this offseason in pursuing new free agents.

After getting knocked out in the ALDS in each of the last two postseasons, the Yankees are in desperate need of capitalizing on the window their core players are providing. Free agent acquisitions like Adrian Morejón are the perfect way to bolster their roster in the most Yankees way possible.

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers seem to be in on any top free agent at any given moment, but they have very good reason to be in on Morejón. His best fit in Los Angeles would be as a starter, given that they already have some dominant left-handed relievers in Tanner Scott and Jack Dreyer.

LA’s rotation has been stacked over the last few seasons, with the likes of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell, Justin Wrobleski, and Roki Sasaki taking up plenty of starts. However, the Dodgers’ star trade deadline acquisition from earlier this year, Tarik Skubal, is becoming a free agent and might not be staying in Los Angeles long-term. If they can’t re-sign Skubal, they could try to fill his rotation spot with Morejón.

If Morejón decides to remain a reliever, the fit is still strong. With the Dodgers losing left-handed reliever Alex Vesia to free agency this offseason, the team could view Morejón as a valuable addition to its bullpen. The storylines surrounding a potential signing would be momentous, as Morejón would be joining the Padres’ biggest rival and would have to face his former team quite often as an NL West opponent.

The Dodgers will be great next year and beyond without adding Morejón, but they’ve been so active and successful at enticing free agents that you simply can’t count them out. LA would have one of the most intimidating bullpens in MLB with his addition, and its left-handed options would be absurdly strong.

New York Mets

The New York Mets have one glaring need when it comes to their pitching staff, and it’s left-handed pitching. Currently, their only southpaw pitchers on the 2027 roster are starters Sean Manaea and Zac Thornton and relievers Nate Lavender and Cionel Pérez. Both sides of the Mets’ staff could use a high-leverage lefty option capable of handling the best hitters in opposing lineups.

It’s no secret that the Mets have been one of the most active teams in free agency ever since team owner Steve Cohen entered the scene in 2020, and the Morejón sweepstakes will likely be a very similar story.

The Mets have money to spend and a dire need for left-handed pitching, both in the bullpen and in their starting rotation. If Morejón were to transition to a starting role, he would immediately become the team’s best left-handed starting option. Conversely, he would become the Mets’ slam-dunk top lefty reliever and might even have a chance to take over the closer’s role if Kodai Senga doesn’t continue his relief dominance.

The Mets actually have a history of signing relievers with the intent of turning them into starters, with the most recent example being Clay Holmes. Holmes was an All-Star-caliber bullpen arm who signed a three-year, $38 million deal with the Mets prior to the 2025 season and flourished in his new role, earning himself a deadline trade to the Chicago Cubs earlier this season.

The Mets had the 16th-best ERA in baseball this season, and Morejón would give them a valuable improvement in that area regardless of which specific role he plays.

Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies had the 21st-best bullpen ERA in MLB this season at 4.43 and could seriously use an elite left-handed option like Morejón. Philadelphia has several star left-handed starters in Cristopher Sánchez and Jesús Luzardo, along with a solid bullpen southpaw in Tim Mayza, but Morejón could give their pitching staff an extra boost to get over the hump in the postseason.

Morejón wouldn’t be a closing pitcher for Philly, as they have multi-time All-Star Jhoan Duran rounding out their relief corps, but he would certainly become their top lefty. It seems as though this would be a strong fit for him if he chooses to remain in a relief role for the foreseeable future.

The main roadblock to making this union come to fruition is the Phillies’ team defense. Morejón has one of the highest groundball rates among relievers and relies on routine plays being made behind him to get out of innings. In San Diego, Morejón was pitching in front of some stellar defenders, including Gold Glove winners Ty France, Manny Machado, and Xander Bogaerts, who combined for +21 FRV and 23 OAA.

The Phillies’ infield defense is largely carried by Bryson Stott (+6 FRV, 9 OAA), alongside other subpar defensive options like Trea Turner, now-free agent Alec Bohm, and Bryce Harper, who posted a collective -30 FRV and -34 OAA. Philadelphia had the league’s worst team defense by DRS (-51) in 2026, so this might throw somewhat of a wrench into this player-team matchup.

In spite of their defensive woes at times, the Phillies would be a very strong fit for Morejón in their bullpen, especially after also losing flamethrowing lefty José Alvarado to free agency this offseason. They have to prioritize fixing their infield, but adding Morejón would certainly help ease their bullpen woes.

Chicago Cubs

From a struggling defensive team to the team that won the 2026 NL Team Gold Glove Award, the Chicago Cubs are yet another strong competitor in the Adrian Morejón sweepstakes. The Cubs boasted one of the best offenses in baseball, leading MLB in hitter fWAR (37.7), team wRC+ (114), and OPS (.767), but their pitching staff fell short of the mark.

The Cubs’ bullpen was worth a collective -0.6 fWAR this season, making it the third-least valuable bullpen in MLB. They also struck out the fifth-fewest hitters in baseball while allowing the fifth-most home runs among all bullpens.

The only competitive lefty in their bullpen is Ryan Rolison, who had a strong showing in 2026, but the team could certainly use another top-end southpaw. The Cubs haven’t reached the NLCS since 2017 and have won just four playoff games in the last nine seasons, so they’ll be looking to improve their roster with as many impact players as possible.

With Pete Crow-Armstrong breaking out as the clear National League MVP this season and veterans like Alex Bregman surging in the second half, the Cubs clearly have the makings of an elite team. However, they need to iron out their flaws as soon as possible. Morejón represents a clear boost to a bullpen that is in dire need of improvement.