The New York Mets have made a couple solid moves this offseason with the signings of Curtis Granderson and Bartolo Colon and while the team doesn't have that much money left to spend, there is a chance they still have an ace up the sleeve, as they have a big hole at shortstop, making trades for Elvis Andrus or Jimmy Rollins or the signing of Stephen Drew as options as the position.
The Mets will head into next season with Rueben Tejada at shortstop if they have to, but that is something that Sandy Alderson is not looking into doing and that is why the team has been linked to Stephen Drew this offseason. Obviously a trade for someone like Elvis Andrus may be a pipe dream, much like the Troy Tulowitzki, but the Texas Rangers have said they are open to dealing him and that could be a massive move for the Mets that immediately would put the team in contention in the National League east.
The Mets have been very bad over the past couple years, but they can quickly get back into things this year if they pull off a move like that, as the division is wide open this year. The Washington Nationals are coming off of a down season and there is no guarantee they will return to form, while the Braves have done next to nothing apart from signing Gavin Floyd and they also lost Brian McCann to free agency with the Yankees, meaning they are vulnerable as well. The Marlins are nowhere close to contending and that could mean the Mets take a chance to try and win now.
Granderson was a solid signing with the way he hit for the Yankees and while he became more of a power hitter, he still possesses great doubles power and should drive in runs in Citi Field. Colon is an older veteran, meaning the Mets will need to start turning things around quickly if they want the money they spent on him to matter again. The two players were signed to about $80 million and while the team has not been looking to pay a great deal for Drew, they could try and snag Rollins or Andrus in a move and that would be a huge upgrade at the position. The signings of Granderson and Colon cost nearly $90 million and while that is more money than the team had spent in a couple years, it could mean they are ready to start actually trying to be in the mix again.
The Mets have been in the trade market themselves, as they have been shopping Ike Davis for some time and it looks like the team is looking to move him soon. Hardball Talk reports that the Baltimore Orioles, Pittsburgh Pirates and Milwaukee Brewers are interested in Davis and that could be a solid move for any of those teams, as he needs a change of scenery after he regressed from the 30 home runs he had in the 2012 season and was sent down to the minors this past year. The team will be without Matt Harvey this season and that is one of the primary reasons why they signed Colon.
