With MLB free agency about to begin, the Los Angeles Dodgers have elected not to extend a qualifying offer to World Series hero Walker Buehler, The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya reported.

While that may sound shocking considering Buehler’s track record and 2024 postseason heroics, it may not ultimately mean much.

A qualifying offer this season is worth $21.05 million, calculated as the mean salary of the 125 highest-paid players in baseball.

Players can receive a qualifying offer, which is for one year, if they are pending free agents, have never received one before, and spent the entire season with their current team.Teams extend such offers, even though they’re rarely accepted, in order to earn draft pick compensation if the player signs elsewhere.

The Dodgers deciding not to extend a qualifying offer to Buehler does not mean the 30-year-old’s time in Los Angeles is over.

The two sides could still work out a deal — one that would probably be multiple years, worth more than that $21.05 million in total.