NY Mets rumors: Reason for not signing Tatsuya Imai is actually promising

On one hand, Tatsuya Imai made perfect sense for the New York Mets. On the other, the deal he signed with the Houston Astros is strangely unsatisfying. If he pitches well, he’s gone after a year.

But that’s not the main takeaway as to why he’ll only visit Citi Field once next season in late August. Mets rumors courtesy of Mark Feinsand say they didn’t view him as an “impact starter.”

If that’s the kind of standard the Mets are going to have, it’s actually promising for what they’re aiming to do this offseason. As frustrating as it may be for zero subtractions and additions to the rotation, it’s a sign (and not asinine) that there’s a standard they’re looking for and it’s a high one, too.

The Mets want an impact starter and they’re raising the bar for who that can be

Imai already had some marks against him. Profiling closely to Kodai Senga and with stats for next season matching closely to what Sean Manaea is projected to do, it’s understandable why they can pass over him.

More importantly, the Mets seem to want some assurance that whomever they do add is impactful enough to make a difference. Any player coming from overseas has questions. The term “impact” is subjective but seems to eliminate a certain level of starting pitcher the Mets could be seeking.

A proven ace-like pitcher would seem to meet this criteria. Free agent options are slim pickens with other hurdles to climb with deals for Framber Valdez, Ranger Suarez, and even Zac Gallen, the threesome with qualifying offer penalties attached. A trade has always seemed to be the most realistic way to improve the rotation even if it requires a separate deal to subtract an arm.

For what it’s worth, Freddy Peralta, Nick Pivetta, and MacKenzie Gore all have a projected 2.9 fWAR next season. Trade rumors involving all three this offseason probably lump that group in as the level of difference-making arm the Mets could actually land. Options extend further upward in terms of projected stats with players like Hunter Greene, Joe Ryan, and Tarik Skubal (obviously) with better projected results.

If it’s an impactful starter the Mets want, they’re going to need to pay up in one way or another. Imai came with some of the most minimal risk with the opt outs after each of his first two seasons before the final of three seasons. It sounds like the Mets aren’t thinking of 2026 completely as a year to reset and build toward something greater. If that were the case, the level of impact pitcher wouldn’t seem to matter quite as much and they would be willing to take a gamble on someone.

Already taking enough gambles with the players they currently have on the pitching staff to the point where their friends may want to have an intervention, we can start to believe the goalpost is raised.