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Mets: Three Yankees free agents for the Mets to consider

By Tim Boyle

Sep 21, 2020; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets first baseman Dominic Smith (2) right fielder Brandon Nimmo (9) and third baseman J.D. Davis (28) look on from the dugout against the Tampa Bay Rays during the ninth inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 21, 2020; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets first baseman Dominic Smith (2) right fielder Brandon Nimmo (9) and third baseman J.D. Davis (28) look on from the dugout against the Tampa Bay Rays during the ninth inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports /
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Sep 11, 2020; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka (19) pitches during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles during the first inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports /

Masahiro Tanaka

A horrible postseason for Masahiro Tanaka may have ended his stay with the Yankees. After seven years with the club, could he finally hit the open market? And if so, should the Mets sign him?

Tanaka is 78-46 with a 3.74 ERA in his 173 starts and one relief appearance. Tanaka hasn’t been one of the league’s most elite pitchers, but he has managed to stay relatively consistent. Even though he doesn’t look like the same pitcher he was in his first three seasons, Tanaka remains an effective big league arm.

Tanaka will turn 32 this November so he’s not too old to skip over entirely in free agency. It’s not an ideal age for a free agent pitcher. It’s also not out of the range of effectiveness.

Like we’ll say with any pitcher going from the AL East to the Mets, we might expect his numbers to improve with the switch. Yankee Stadium is notoriously friendly to hitters while Citi Field can help a pitcher out.

In a scenario where the Mets sign Tanaka, I don’t think it would be the last of the additions to the rotation made by the club. It would be a move made by Steve Cohen to “stick it to the Yankees” as he hopes to see one of their former players excel with the other New York team.

The script of how this could go well for the Mets is already written. So is the one where it backfires completely and the team has an albatross contract all because they wanted to steal a player from the team they share a city with.

The Mets need at least two good new starting pitchers this winter. Tanaka can be one of them.

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