Sometimes, a change of scenery is necessary for a baseball player. Whether it be due to their own personal struggles, poor fit or simply time to move on, making that switch can make a huge difference in performance.

There are some free agents this cycle who could either use a change of scenery or will almost certainly get one, whether they like it or not.

Here, we'll dive into which free agents are primed for a career revival with their new teams in 2023. The ones with player or club options are included with the expectation that the sides will move on.

MLB

Finding new MLB teams for soon-to-be free-agent shortstops

 

Mike Zunino, Catcher

After the Tampa Bay Rays picked up his club option for 2022, the power-hitting catcher had a disappointing start before thoracic outlet syndrome ended his season after 36 games. He slashed just .148/.195/.304 in 115 at-bats.

Now, Zunino is one of the Rays' key pending free agents. They could bring him back, which should immediately give a boost to the position. But if they let him walk, Zunino will make some team desperate for a catcher really happy.

In 2021, he slashed .216/.301/.559 with a career-high 33 home runs and earned his first and only All-Star appearance of his career. A healthy Zunino at age 32 with a full season's sample size should be good for about 20 homers.

Zunino was also one of the better defensive catchers the last time he played a full season, tying for ninth in defensive runs saved and sixth in defensive runs above average among fellow backstops in 2021.

 

Adam Frazier, IF/OF

It was just over a year ago when Frazier was named an All-Star with the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates. Since then, he was dealt at last year's trade deadline to boost the San Diego Padres lineup and was traded again last November to the Seattle Mariners to become their everyday second baseman.

But Frazier's struggled to find consistency at the plate since his Midsummer Classic selection in 2021. Before last year's All-Star break, Frazier slashed .330/.397/.463. After the intermission, his slash line dropped to .266/.323/.332.

This year with Seattle, his numbers dropped to .238/.301/.311. The Mariners are likely to move on from Frazier as they try to make a second consecutive postseason run.

He shows flashes that are difficult to ignore, like in July when he hit .314, or when he delivered one of the biggest hits of the Mariners' season with a go-ahead RBI double in their historic comeback against the Toronto Blue Jays in the wild-card series.