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3 free agent center fielders the Mets can look at if improving the defense is paramount
If the Mets want a defensive boost in center field, these are three free agents they can target.
New York Mets rumors involving the team’s potential search for a center fielder caught many of us off-guard a few weeks ago. Jung Hoo Lee was one of the rumored options for the Mets, but he is now unavailable after signing a six-year deal with the San Francisco Giants.
The center field free agent market is actually a bit more robust this year following an offseason last winter where Brandon Nimmo was the star. However, Nimmo backtracked defensively this past season and if the Mets would like the best-fielding outfield they can get, a move to left field to fill that vacancy is one option.
If it’s defense in center field the Mets desire most, these three available options can help them. Cody Bellinger didn’t make the cut because the qualifying offer likely eliminates him from signing with the Mets. Plus, with zero rumors about the team looking into signing him, it’s safe to assume they won’t.
1) Kevin Kiermaier
Four Gold Gloves to his name including one last year with the Toronto Blue Jays, Kevin Kiermarier remains an intriguing center field option for any team looking for a guy who can hit well and play stellar defense. Kiermaier’s ten years in Tampa Bay created a reputation for him as a guy who can steal runs away whenever healthy.
The “whenever healthy” description is never good. Kiermaier has topped 120 games only four times in his career, but has accomplished this twice in the last three seasons.
A questionable bat at times, Kiermaier did hit .265/.322/.419 last season in Toronto. It was higher than the career .249/.309/.409 he now owns. It’s an acceptable total if you’re going to slot him in as your number nine hitter. It’s precisely where the Mets would probably place him.
Quick on the bases too, Kiermaier went to double-digit stolen bases last season for the first time since 2019. Successfully swiping 14 bases in 15 attempts, he has something to offer. Likely only a one or two-year deal at the most is all he’d expect to get. As far as defensively gifted center fielders go, he’s one who continues to live up to his reputation. Just make sure you outfit his uniform with bubble wrap.
2) Michael A. Taylor
A guy the Mets have actually been rumored to have interest in, Michael A. Taylor has only one Gold Glove. This shouldn’t eliminate him from contention as a Mets center field option. Since leaving the Washington Nationals after the 2020 season, he has been a much more productive player and one of the best fielders at the position in the American League.
Consistency isn’t what you’d expect from Taylor. His past three seasons have included batting averages of .244, .254, and .220. Meanwhile, the home runs have gone from 12, to 9, and finally to a career-high 21 with the Minnesota Twins last year. He’s a lifetime .239/.294/.389 hitter which is a bit below Kiermaier. Where Taylor has an advantage is health. He has been available for much of his career. He has 5 seasons of 120 games or more plus another with 118 played.
Taylor is a smaller budget center field target for the Mets to sign. He has never made more than $4.5 million in any single season of his career. About this amount or maybe slightly more should do the trick.
3) Harrison Bader
Finally, there’s a third one-time Gold Glove winner. Harrison Bader won his in 2021 with the St. Louis Cardinals. It has been a long strange trip ever since, including a random August waiver claim away from the New York Yankees by the Cincinnati Reds last year.
Of these three options, Bader is the most impossible to predict if only because of the injuries. Staying at the 120 games played mark, he has only accomplished this twice in his career. When on the field, he has averaged out to slashing .243/.310/.396 for his career. Maybe more adept at stealing bases considering he had 20 last season in only 98 games, he’d be a choice to go with if it’s speed you want.
Bader does feel a little too fourth outfielder-ish when compared to Kiermaeier and Taylor. He certainly can grow out of it. Are the Mets willing to take a chance for a year to see what he can do?
His time with the Yankees was highlighted by a huge postseason where he went all Daniel Murphy. Bader clobbered 3 home runs against the Cleveland Guardians in the ALDS and another pair in the ALCS before the Yankees bowed out to the Houston Astros.
The inability to stay on the field is definitely something to be afraid of with any of these three, but Bader more so than the other two due to how recent his constant injuries have been. He’s the lightest choice of all.
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