Injury-stricken NY Mets let obvious free agent target sign with NL East rivals

How much do Billy Eppler and David Stearns have in common? Their seemingly lack of interest in veteran lefty Andrew Chafin is right up there at the top of commonalities shared by the ex and the current New York Mets shot caller.

Chafin was a match for the Mets at the 2022 trade deadline. He stayed put with the Detroit Tigers. In free agency, he was again someone the Mets could have considered. Eppler didn’t snatch him up. The situation wasn’t any different at the 2024 trade deadline when he went from the Tigers to the Texas Rangers. To complete the circle, the Mets passed on him yet again this past offseason when he settled on a minor league deal with the Tigers.

In a great time of need for a lefty reliever to replace A.J. Minter and Danny Young, signing Chafin who recently became a free agent was an easy conclusion to jump to. Stearns didn’t budge on his apparent thoughts of Chafin. He’ll suit up with the Washington Nationals on a major league deal worth only $1 million. Somewhere Dr. Evil is lifting his pinky up to his lip.

Did the Mets just let a perfect free agent fit sign within the division?

Well-known, well-traveled, and well-mustached, Chafin has developed a tendency to walk a few too many batters in recent seasons. He finished the 2023 season with 4.9 per 9 and last year was at 5 per 9. While it does come with some impressive strikeout totals, it’s understandable why he’d turn off some teams even beyond the walks.

Chafin ranked among the best last year in chase and whiff percentage, finishing in the 97th and 96th percentile respectively. He is a low velocity pitcher, though. He relied on his slider and sinker most, the second of which got hammered for a batting average of .442.

The Mets seem to have a certain preference for the types of arms they want in their chamber. Chafin might be outside that preference point. Age can’t be a big concern considering this club consistently brought back Adam Ottavino. Chafin’s lack of being able to freely get sent to the minors doesn’t matter either. He’d be replacing one of two lefties in the same circumstance.

So why no bite? A .273/.363/.375 slash line from lefties against him last year is enough for the Mets to consider him of no value as a left-handed pitcher. The year before, lefties batted .264/.369/.375 against him. Reverse splits for two straight seasons can help explain the pass this time around.

Chafin and Stearns just missed crossing paths when he was a member of the Milwaukee Brewers to finish the 2023 season. Stearns had already stepped down from his role at that point. It was his worst stint with any ball club in years, pitching to a 5.82 ERA in 17 innings.

All we can do is guess why the Mets, yet again, didn’t get Chafin to put his John Hancock on a contract. In part, we should also consider the other side. Maybe Chafin hasn’t had much desire to come to New York either and would rather have extra freedom with the Nationals than the added pressure of pitching for the Mets.