Padres' Ty France Labeled As Free Agent To Avoid Despite Career Year

The 2026 season was cut short for a San Diego Padres team that looked like the hottest team in baseball. After losing their NLDS matchup to the Milwaukee Brewers three-to-one, San Diego is back to the drawing board.

San Diego will enter its first offseason under new owners Jose Feliciano and Kwanza Jones after the club's sale became official in August. New ownership means this offseason will have a certain significance for the Padres, as it will give insight into the club’s willingness to spend for years to come.

That willingness to spend also applies to retaining key players who played massive roles in the Padres’ success down the stretch of the season – Michael King, Adrian Morejon, and Ty France, for example. While there will be more eyes on how King’s and Morejon’s free agency pans out, the France situation doesn't lack intrigue.

Landing with the Padres on a minor league deal, France earned a spot on the major league roster and ended up being a pivotal piece in their 91-win campaign. The 32-year-old slashed .295/.363/.502 with a 139 OPS+ across 133 games for the Friars in 2026. He was worth 4.5 bWAR this season – more than any other player on the roster.

Now, France enters the open market after his career year in San Diego. There are some questions to be asked about his intrigue, however, as a one-off season such as the one he had is unlikely to be replicated. Bleacher Report has France listed as one of the seven free agents teams should avoid this winter because of such concerns.

Though there are no questions to ask about how valuable France was in San Diego this season, there are questions about his ability to continue playing at such a level. After all, the Padres were France’s fifth team in three seasons, thanks to his OPS dropping below league average in 2024 and 2025. Though that number spiked back up this year, the sustainability of that is unknown.

France made just $2 million with the Padres in 2026, but he’ll probably land a two- or three-year deal worth around $25-$35 million this winter, given recent examples of first baseman contracts after similar seasons. The question is whether or not the Padres will be the ones to bite.

After all, San Diego was where France enjoyed his explosion. Clearly, France enjoys playing at Petco Park, where he recorded an .871 OPS in 65 games. There aren’t any star first basemen set to hit the market this winter, perhaps making the Padres more likely to bring back France on what could be an overpay instead of being left with a hole at the position.

France’s bat may never reach such heights again, but he clearly still has the tools to be an above-average hitter. He also still possesses one of the best gloves at first base, leaving his future employer with the assurance that at least one aspect of his game is great. He was even just included as a Gold Glove finalist this morning after winning the award last season.

It’s impossible to predict how France’s next couple of years will be, and that unpredictability is what makes baseball so beautiful. Despite his appearance on the shortlist of players to avoid this free-agent window, I think it makes more sense for the Padres to retain France than to let him walk and hope to find value elsewhere.

No matter what, they’ll be taking a risk on signing any first baseman this winter. Why not take the chance on the guy who was worth more than any other Padre in 2026?