Mets may be interested in John Mayberry, Jr.

The Mets may have interest in outfielder/first baseman John Mayberry, Jr., who was recently non-tendered by Toronto.

According to MLB Trade Rumors, Mayberry, who turns 31 years old on December 21, was set to make $1.9 million if offered arbitration.

Mayberry split the 2014 season with Philadelphia and Toronto, where he combined to hit .212/.310/.425 with seven home runs in 78 games played.

Against left-handed pitching in 2014, Mayberry had a triple slash of .243/.341/.571. For his career, Mayberry has hit .269/.324/.533 against lefties.

If the Mets do not acquire a right-handed hitter for the bench, the expectation is that the slot will be filled by either Eric Campbell or Cesar Puello.

Puello, who had a down year in 2014 for Triple-A Las Vegas after a breakout campaign in 2013 for Double-A Binghamton, did not receive a call-up from the Mets when rosters expanded this past September.

It’s been reported that most in the organization do not think highly of Puello, which should shed some light on why he wasn’t promoted for a look at the end of this past season.

Thoughts:

As someone who could be a bat off the bench while serving as a sub for either Curtis Granderson or Lucas Duda against tough lefties, Mayberry would be a pretty solid fit for the Mets.

While the Mets are so far refusing to say that Lucas Duda will sit against tough lefties, it would certainly make sense for the Mets to at least be open to that option.

For his career, Duda has hit .212 against left-handed pitchers, with just nine of his 74 career home runs coming against them.

If Mayberry is signed, the Mets could use him at first base against tough lefties while leaving Michael Cuddyer in the outfield. Another option would be to use Cuddyer at first base when Duda sits against lefties while using Mayberry in the outfield in place of Curtis Granderson.