Ty France appears to be one of the first major free agents to agree to a deal. Will Sammon of The Athletic reports that France has multiple teams expressed interest in the former Padres first baseman. That should help create a healthy and competitive market for him to get the best deal in free agency after re-establishing his value.

The 32-year-old is coming off a career year with San Diego. In 2026, he slashed .295/.363/.502 with a career-high 21 home runs. His 141 wRC+ made him one of baseball's most productive hitters. He'll carry that into what should be a lucrative free-agent deal.

With a potential lockout incoming, France could sign before December 1. The fact there's reports on multiple teams interested in him suggest he's getting closer to signing. For a player who had to settle on a minor league deal and earn his spot on the club in spring, it's been a remarkable turnaround. His strong season helped the Padres go on a strong late-season run to land the top Wild Card spot.

What Does Ty France's Free Agency Look Like

France was a candidate to receive the qualifying offer after his career season. However, the Padres declined. That seemed rather bizarre for a player coming off a 3.6 fWAR season, but other teams can benefit from that decision. With no qualifying offer weighing on his market, there is no draft-pick penalty to sign him.

France should be one of the better bargains for teams looking to add a right-handed bat to the middle of their lineup. When healthy, he's a safe bet for 500 plate appearances, 20 homers, and 70 RBI.

In addition to the offense, he provides quality first-base defense. He won the American League Gold Glove at his position in 2025. Given his age, that might not be something teams can project he'll remain moving forward, especially on a longer-term contract.

One recent contract that France's camp could look to in the open market is Christian Walker. Walker earned a three-year, $60 million deal from the Houston Astros after the 2024 season.

However, it's worth noting that Walker had averaged 31 home runs and 93 RBI three seasons prior to free agency. The former Diamondbacks slugger has superior counting numbers to France, who makes up the home run gap by collecting more singles and doubles. Due to the home run gap, it's unlikely that France will approach Walker's $20 million AAV.

France is best suited to be in a position where his ability to hit produces runs. He's not a power threat, so the best situations for him to put runs on the board are hitting with runners in scoring position. He's a career .300 hitter in such situations. So he'd serve ideally as a cleanup hitter behind multiple strong on-base threats.

Tim Britton ofThe Athletic projects France to receive a two-year, $25 million contract, which feels more like his floor in this market. It will depend on how much teams weigh his 2026 production vs. the three previous seasons.