Strasburg, Cole among 8 players to reject qualifying offers
Rob Tringali / Major League Baseball / Getty
Eight players declined their one-year, $17.8-million qualifying offers ahead of MLB's 5 p.m. ET deadline Thursday.
Madison Bumgarner, Gerrit Cole, Josh Donaldson, Marcell Ozuna, Anthony Rendon, Will Smith, Stephen Strasburg, and Zack Wheeler all declined, while Jake Odorizzi and Jose Abreu accepted their offers.
| Player | Team | Accepted |
|---|---|---|
| Jose Abreu | CWS | Yes |
| Madison Bumgarner | SF | No |
| Gerrit Cole | HOU | No |
| Josh Donaldson | ATL | No |
| Jake Odorizzi | MIN | Yes |
| Marcell Ozuna | STL | No |
| Anthony Rendon | WSH | No |
| Will Smith | SF | No |
| Stephen Strasburg | WSH | No |
| Zack Wheeler | NYM | No |
The players that declined are now tied to draft-pick compensation, and teams signing those players will be forced to surrender a pick upon doing so. Teams that issued the qualifying offer still have the ability to re-sign those players.
Smith agreed to a three-year, $39-million deal with the Atlanta Braves after declining. The San Francisco Giants will now receive a draft pick in 2020 from Atlanta.
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