Nick Castellanos was one of the 14 players who was issued a one-year, $18.4 million qualifying offer, a formality for the top free agents.
The Cincinnati Reds officially extended a qualifying offer to Castellanos on Sunday after he opted out of the final two years of his contract last week. Castellanos was guaranteed $34 million over the next two seasons when he opted out, but he could command a contract above $20 million per year on the free-agent market.
Castellanos is expected to have a strong list of suitors and will certainly decline the qualifying offer. The 29-year-old right fielder is one of the premier hitters available and he’s coming off the best statistical season of his career.