NY Mets Rumors: 2 targets being sought-after by rival Phillies

About as equally as disappointing as the New York Mets performed in 2021 is how the Philadelphia Phillies did. Their massive payroll helped them finish only a handful of games better than the Mets. So, to see names appear on their radar that we expect to be mentioned in offseason Mets rumors should come as no surprise.

Two potential targets for the Mets in free agency are now being sought-after by the Phillies. While they haven’t really appeared in any early offseason Mets rumors, we can fully expect them to—as long as they remain available.

Offseason Mets rumors and Phillies rumors should crossover

The Phillies are reportedly looking to bolster two of their biggest weaknesses this winter: center field and the bullpen. As much as coming up short in clutch was a weakness of the Mets, those two areas were the Achilles heel of the Phillies.

According to Jon Heyman, the Phillies have their eyes on center fielder Starling Marte and 2021 Mets star reliever Aaron Loup.

Marte did himself a lot of favors this past year with epic performances with the Miami Marlins and Oakland Athletics. An aging stolen base thief, I understand why some may be hesitant and not have much excitement if he ends up in any Mets rumors. However, with no sign of slowing down, he could be the offensive boost missing from the club last year.

The outfield is an area where the Mets will need to likely makeover heavily. Uncertainty in both corner spots with only last year’s center fielder Brandon Nimmo guaranteed to get some action in one of the positions, it’s a logical leap to expect the Mets to have interest in Marte.

Losing Loup would be especially enraging to Mets fans because of how terrific he was out of the bullpen in 2021. You need a microscope to see his ERA. And while I don’t think anyone suspects he could replicate his 2021 season again, he certainly raised his free agent stock drastically. A departure from the Mets to the Phillies would make it even more painful.

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Early Mets rumors have been focused on the big stars like Javier Baez and Kris Bryant. With a front office plan seemingly now in place, maybe they can shift to players a little more.