5 former Mets player fan favorites without a job as spring training nears

MLB free agency has never been a discussion in a single Fast & Furious film mostly because there’s nothing fast about it. Furious can apply. Fans and players have waited around furiously for months for many of the roster moves to take place. Amazingly, we’re in the last leg of January and a couple of notable free agents are still out there and available. Included in this bunch are these former New York Mets fan favorites.

Honorable Mention: Noah Syndergaard

The fan favoritism of Noah Syndergaard is something philosophers can debate in the future. Often it’s how things end that define how a player is remembered. In that case, Syndergaard is anything but a fan favorite.

Electric with a big personality? Yes, he crosses off that check box. But with him sitting out there in free agency, only the Mets fans who have a jersey of his still hanging in the closet think of him as a former Mets player the way we will with many others. Because of Tommy John Surgery, we’re now a half-decade removed from when he last played a full season with the team.

Syndergaard will settle for an honorable mention on this list because of how important he was for a time as a member of the Mets. Not nearly as well-liked anymore as these other remaining free agents, there was a time when he was the most popular guy on the roster. It came sometime in between Matt Harvey getting hurt and Jacob deGrom taking off as the best pitcher in baseball. Let’s call it the 2016 regular season.

The fandom for him in New York dropped when he fled for the Los Angeles Angels after hinting he'd stay in New York. His trolling of the Mets no-hitter didn't help matters either nor did his skipping starts against his ex-ball club.

Eduardo Escobar remains a free agent

Eduardo Escobar never reached the level of popularity as Syndergaard did. Still, he was very well-liked by teammates and fans even during his 2022 slump. Fans don’t hold ill-will against him. After all, his Player of the Month honor at the end of 2022 was an absolute treat. He was one of the handful of players who actually showed up to play in the playoffs.

Escobar’s bright personality is what had fans rooting for him. It helped that the Mets were playing well around the veteran infielder as well. Almost forgotten because of the team’s success in 2022 is how poorly Escobar played for many months. He revved up the engine for the NL East title chase only for many of his teammates to blow out their tires.

Escobar’s time with the Mets ended with a June trade in 2023 to the Los Angeles Angels. They decided not to pick up his option for 2024, leaving him in no man’s land for the time being.

A fit to return to the Mets? Strangely, he is, but that’s only because the spot he occupied was never replaced. He’d be a Plan-B for any team that misses out on signing Justin Turner this offseason. A poor defensive player well past his prime, Mets fans have nothing but nice things to say about the person he is.

Travis Jankowski remains a free agent

One of the most unexpected fan favorites in recent memory is Travis Jankowski. A somewhat quirky fifth outfielder known for his defensive skills, he’s probably the least impactful player the fans attached themselves to. Popularity isn’t always about the box score. It certainly wasn’t the case with Jankowski who hit .167 in 63 plate appearances.

Some may forget Jankowski actually had two stints with the Mets in 2022. He was selected off of waivers on August 1 by the Seattle Mariners only to return to the Mets as a free agent on August 16 after the M’s released him. He made his way to the Texas Rangers last season and fans of his were stunned to see what he was able to do.

In 287 plate appearances, Jankowski batted .263/.357/.332 for the 2023 champions. He was present on the World Series roster, successfully driving in a pair of runs in his 8 plate appearances. He had only 2 RBI during his entire time with the Mets.

What made Jankowski popular with fans was his comments saying “No one is gonna be buying my jersey.” Then came actual t-shirts with the quote worn by teammates. Just reading this, if you’re longing for the days of how great the 2022 Mets season was, you’re not alone.

Aaron Loup remains a free agent

Some Mets become popular because of who they are. Others do it with their performance. Aaron Loup was a guy who had one of the most memorable seasons on the mound for a middle reliever back in 2021.

Loup appeared in 65 games and in those 56.2 innings of work put together a 6-0 record while recording a 0.95 ERA. A lefty reliever no one had huge expectations for came to New York and dominated in his role. We haven’t forgotten it either.

It’s a shame the 2021 Mets collapsed because Loup was practically invincible in September. He didn’t give up a single earned run. In fact, he surrendered just one run altogether in the second half of the season.

The Mets, not thinking he’d be this great, signed him to only a one-year deal. He capitalized on the big season and parlayed it into a two-year $15 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels. He signed before the lockout began and the Mets were then left searching for a replacement.

Loup’s time with the Angels wasn’t nearly as successful. A 3.84 ERA in 2022 followed by a 6.10 ERA performance in 2023 is the likely cause as to why he’s still out there searching for a job.

Tommy Pham remains a free agent

The irony of Tommy Pham making this list is when the Mets signed him there was a lot of backlash. Among all of the offseason moves the team made heading into 2023, the Pham signing was met with the most scrutiny. He started off poorly but soon became one of the team’s best players.

Tough and gutsy, Pham would go on to hit .268/.348/.472 for the Mets in his part-time role that grew into more of an everyday one. Originally brought in to start mostly against lefties, poor performance from Daniel Vogelbach and outfielder Mark Canha allowed a little more playing time for Pham.

After getting traded to the eventual NL pennant winning Arizona Diamondbacks, Pham was critical of the lack of hard work Mets players were putting into their performance. It created more questions about the 2023 clubhouse and how much the relations of players may have dragged the team down. It wasn’t that anyone was necessarily a bad person as much as they had differing opinions on some important things.

Pham’s current free agent status might have a little something to do with questions about how well he’ll fit in certain locker rooms. Fans of his hope he lands with a contender. Lovers of drama can cross their fingers hoping it’s on the same roster with fellow free agent Joc Pederson. They’d make a pretty decent platoon.