Luke Voit Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports

2020 HR champ elects free agency

Originally posted on WI Sports Heroics | By Tyler Koerth_ | Last updated 8/3/23

The trade deadline has come and past, and a few significant players have opted out of their minor league contracts since. Former Cy Young Award winner Dallas Keuchel is one example of this, and now most recently it has been revealed that the 2020 home run champion has done the same.

Luke Voit opts out of his minor league contract with the New York Mets

In 2020, Luke Voit belted a league-leading 22 home runs in just 56 games. At that time he was with the New York Yankees, and he received MVP votes for his efforts during the shortened season. Unfortunately things got tougher after that, and he has bounced around the league. He has had big league stints with the San Diego Padres, Washington Nationals and Milwaukee Brewers since.

The Brewers let him go earlier this year after struggling to find a place in their lineup. He ended up signing a minor league contract with the New York Mets and was excelling with their Triple-A team the Syracuse Mets. Over 37 games played he crushed 14 home runs for them that included a stretch of hitting a long ball six games in a row.

It appears that Voit is swinging a hot bat, and his decision to opt out likely means he hopes a team will take a flier on him and sign him to a major league contract. If he continues to produce he has the potential to be an impact bat gained post trade deadline, which is rather rare.

This article first appeared on WI Sports Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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