Willy Adames DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, the San Francisco Giants have signed free agent shortstop Willy Adames to a seven-year contract worth $182 million. This is the largest contract in their team's history and the third-largest guaranteed contract earned by a Dominican-born player. The 29-year-old enjoyed an excellent campaign last season with Milwaukee as he posted a strong .251/.331/.462 line with 32 home runs and 21 stolen bases. He added a career-high 121 RBI and 33 doubles. Under the hood, Adames generated an excellent 12.0% barrel rate with a .461 xSLG which was both significantly above the average marks. In addition, he posted a 10.2% walk rate, which placed him in the top 80th percentile among hitters. Fantasy managers should expect the power-hitting shortstop to bat in the heart of the San Francisco lineup, which should provide him with ample RBI opportunities. Given his ability to contribute to all five standard categories, fantasy managers should see him as a high-end shortstop entering the 2025 campaign.

Free-agent shortstop Willy Adames is drawing interest from the New York Yankees, who are expected to pursue him in the event they lose out on Juan Soto. While the Yankees are technically set at shortstop with Anthony Volpe, it is anticipated that either Volpe or Adames would have to make the move to another position if a deal gets done, with Volpe likely heading to the keystone to allow Adames to play short, or perhaps having Adames play third to move Jazz Chisholm Jr. elsewhere. Nevertheless, whether it is the Yankees or another team, whoever ends up with Adames will be getting a player who is coming off his highest WAR season to date (4.8) and finished in the top-15 hitters for fantasy last season after the 29-year-old posted a .251-32-112-93-21 line with a .342 wOBA and 119 wRC+. Though the right-handed hitter has cut down on his strikeout rate over the last few seasons, it is still well above-average (25.1%), which probably limits any potential improvement in batting average. But with all that other production while he's in his prime, Adames will cost much more in 2025 fantasy drafts than he did a season ago.

Free-agent shortstop Willy Adames has officially declined the Milwaukee Brewers' $21.05 million qualifying offer on Tuesday, as expected. With Adames declining, the Brewers will be assured draft-pick compensation if he signs with another team on the open market this offseason. This was the first time that the Brewers have ever extended a qualifying offer. Adames is 29 years old and is the top SS in the free-agent class, which made it a no-brainer move for him to decline the offer. Assuming he signs for more than $50 million, Milwaukee would be given a draft pick between the end of the first round and the start of the competitive balance Round A. Adames was one of the team's top offensive performers in 2024, slashing .251/.331/.462 with a .794 OPS and career-highs in homers (32), RBI (112) and steals (21) in 161 regular-season games. He's reportedly open to the idea of moving to third base for a new team.

MLB Network's Jon Morosi reports that the Houston Astros are interested in free-agent shortstop Willy Adames, possibly to play third base if they cannot bring Alex Bregman back. In addition to the Astros, Morosi lists the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, New York Yankees, Atlanta Braves and Toronto Blue Jays as potential suitors for Adames, who will have a robust market this offseason. The Astros are already set with Jeremy Pena at the 6 and veteran Jose Altuve at second, so Adames would likely move to the hot corner if he were to land in Houston. The 29-year-old reportedly has already received offers from the Dodgers and New York Mets, with the Mets offering seven years and over $160 million. A move to the Mets would also likely result in Adames shifting to third with Francisco Lindor already entrenched at shortstop.

Free-agent shortstop Willy Adames has received offers from the New York Mets and the Los Angeles Dodgers, according to MLB Insider Mike Rodriguez. Rodriguez noted that the Mets have offered the infielder a contract worth $160 million spread across seven years with the intention of him moving over to cover the hot corner. Adames has stated he prefers to play shortstop, but a sizeable contract and playing on a team that just made the NLCS may convince him. The details of the Los Angeles offer has not been reported, but if Adames were to sign there, he would be expected to be the team's starting shortstop. Last season, the 29-year-old enjoyed a nice bounce-back campaign as he hit 32 home runs with 112 RBI, compared to the 24 home runs and 80 RBI he tallied in 2023. Fantasy managers should view Adames as one of the top options for power at shortstop heading into the 2025 campaign.