While teams around the National League East were busy adding talented players throughout the division, familiar faces went to different places in the major leagues. The New York Mets saw some notable subtractions for the second straight offseason, but it wasn't just the Mets that saw fan favorites leave for other places.
10. Noah Syndergaard (left the Philadelphia Phillies to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers)
Syndergaard is not a Dodger unless the Dodgers had a hole to fill in their rotation. Well, Walker Buehler is out for the season with Tommy John surgery, so Syndergaard will have a chance to prove himself again in a big market. So the Dodgers signed him for $13 million this year, and it’s not a bad deal, actually. Sydnergaard had an over 100 ERA+ last year between the Angels and Phillies thanks to soft contact, which was an adjustment he made following 18 months of recovery from Tommy John surgery.
9. Michael Conforto (left the New York Mets to sign with the San Francisco Giants)
Mets fans at one point projected the former 10th overall pick to be the next big thing in Flushing, and there were flashes of that throughout his career. But he picked a bad time to have his worst season two years ago, and the business side of the sport alongside a nagging injury meant he didn’t play in the majors last year. Now he’ll play left field for the San Francisco Giants, with whom he agreed to a two-year, $36 million contract this winter with a possible opt out after this year. It will be a good opportunity for him to regain any confidence that he might have lost last year.
8. Zach Eflin (left the Philadelphia Phillies to sign with the Tampa Bay Rays)
Eflin’s seven years in Philadelphia could be defined as average and not always healthy. He had great moments and bad moments with the Phillies, and somehow the Tampa Bay Rays rewarded him with a 3-year, $40 million contract. Why? Because Eflin proved to be effective as a reliever in September and in the postseason (2.45 ERA as a reliever in 18 innings), and it gives the Rays someone who can start and who can come out of the bullpen.