10 best Mets free agent targets to pursue this offseason

9) NY Mets free agent targets to pursue: Nathan Eovaldi

With pretty much the entire rotation entering free agency, the Mets will need to make moves to ensure their rotation is in good shape again.

One veteran the Mets should keep their eye on is Nathan Eovaldi. The right hander dealt with injury in 2022 and has dealt with injuries for much of his career but when he's healthy, he's a very effective mid-rotation arm.

Eovaldi went 6-3 with a 3.87 ERA in his 20 starts this season for Boston. He struck out 8.5 batters per nine while walking just 1.6 per nine. The 1.7 home runs per nine is high, but overall, Eovaldi was solid when healthy.

In 2021 he made all 32 starts and had a career year. He posted a 3.75 ERA but his FIP was 2.79 suggesting he got extremely unlucky. He struck out 9.6 batters per nine while walking 1.7/9. He was an all-star finished fourth in the AL Cy Young balloting, and placed 15th in the AL MVP balloting.

Eovaldi has been an outstanding postseason performer in his career. He has a 3.14 ERA in 11 appearances. The ERA is much higher than it should be because of one outing where he allowed four runs while recording just two outs in relief. In the other ten appearances, Eovaldi has been outstanding.

His most memorable appearance came in relief in the 2018 World Series where he pitched six scoreless innings in relief before allowing a Max Muncy walk-off home run in the 18th inning. Eovaldi allowed just four earned runs in 22.1 innings across six appearances.

Eovaldi is 32 so this is probably his last chance at a nice contract. The Mets can afford it and he'd be a quality veteran to plug into their rotation.