The New York Mets got by last season with a solid starting pitching rotation and two excellent bats in Daniel Murphy and Yoenis Cespedes. While the Mets will bring back that same pitching rotation, the chances both Murphy and Cespedes will be back are slim to none. Both stars are expected to command bigger contracts than the Mets want to give them which will cause the team to look elsewhere. With trades unlikely, who can the Mets bring on to fill the holes?
According to BaseballEssential.com, the Mets and Jason Heyward are a perfect match. Heyward is coming off a solid season with the St. Louis Cardinals and could command a contract worth upwards of $180 million over nine years. He is young and player the Mets can continue to try and build around. The team has the ability to take on a contract that size. They proved that by showing interest in a trade for Troy Tulowitzki. With other big contracts coming off the books in the next two years, the Mets can afford to spend on Heyward.
The outfielder would be the ideal replacement for Cespedes. while he might not be an MVP, he has become on of the best in the league after hitting .293 last season. He is also considered one of the best outfielders in the league and would pair well alongside Curtis Granderson and Juan Lagares by switching players around.
The interest in Heyward is high which means the Mets could miss out. Where do they look instead? Of course re-signing Cespedes is an option. According to Adam Rubin of ESPN.com, the Mets are not shutting the door on keeping Cespedes or Murphy around, but they are not keen on it. Justin Upton could be a target as he played well for the San Diego Padres last season. Alex Gordon could also be a favorite to bring on.
The Mets also need infield help and are reportedly all in on Ben Zobrist. According to Rubin, Zobrist is the No.1 priority for the Mets this offseason despite his demands for a four-year contract while being 35. The Mets only want to sign Murphy if he waives the fourth-year demand. It almost makes more sense for the Mets to simply keep Murphy around instead of investing too many years into a deal for Zobrist who might see that Father Time catches up quickly.
