3 NY Mets free agent targets they must not lose out on next

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The New York Mets lost out on their white whale of the offseason as Yoshinobu Yamamoto signed a mega-deal to join Shohei Ohtani in Los Angeles. Yamamoto made perfect sense as a frontline starter who was not attached to the qualifying offer and is just 25 years old, but everything the Dodgers had to offer was clearly too much for Yamamoto to turn down.

While losing Yamamoto hurts in a big way, the offseason is far from over for the Mets. With Yamamoto out of the picture, it's time for David Stearns to get to work and start making some more meaningful additions to this team. So far they've added around the margins which is good, but we've yet to see any big signings.

These three players are all great fits on this Mets team for different reasons and would help them at least have a puncher's chance at landing a Wild Card spot in the loaded National League. The Mets cannot lose any of them.

1) Justin Turner

It's time to bring Justin Turner home. Forget the fact that the Mets gave up on him and he excelled with the Dodgers and Red Sox (especially against the Mets). Just focus on everything Turner can do to make this Mets team better. He's clearly a perfect fit.

First and foremost, this team needs a DH. At 39 years old, that's where Turner would primarily slot in just about every day at least to begin the season. That's where he played most of the time this past season with Boston, and that's where he'd make a large impact. He's obviously better than the likes of Mark Vientos and D.J. Stewart who'd be there if the season started tomorrow, and is certainly better than Daniel Vogelbach who was the Mets primary DH for most of this past season.

While Turner would be the primary DH, he can also help the Mets in the field if needed. Ronny Mauricio's injury means Brett Baty is more than likely going to be the Mets third baseman on Opening Day. The Mets giving Baty another chance to prove himself makes a lot of sense, but if he doesn't improve or if he misses time due to injury, having Turner who can step in at the hot corner would be a tremendous luxury. That's something they wouldn't have if they sign a player who cannot play the field at all.

Turner had an .800 OPS with Boston this past season, hitting 23 home runs and driving in 96 runs. He's still as clutch as they come, and can give Pete Alonso some of the protection he's been lacking for so long.

2) Lucas Giolito

The Mets missing out on Yamamoto does not mean they need to overpay and sign Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery to massive nine-figure deals for the next half-decade or longer. Snell and Montgomery aren't bad, obviously, but the Mets can do better with the kind of money they'll garner. Additionally in Snell's case, the fact that he has the qualifying offer attached should be a non-starter.

While Snell and Montgomery should be afterthoughts, the Mets do still need another starter. The options aren't great, but Lucas Giolito makes sense for the Mets for a couple of reasons.

Let's get this out of the way. He was bad in 2023. A 4.88 ERA in 33 starts is not what anyone wants, and a 6.96 ERA down the stretch with the Angels and Guardians is even worse. Still, Giolito did have a 3.73 ERA with the White Sox before being traded and has a track record of being a solid arm.

Giolito's ceiling is right around where Montgomery's is if not higher. From 2019-2021 he had a 3.43 ERA in 72 starts, finishing with three straight top-11 Cy Young finishes. 2021 was only a couple of years ago. It's not impossible for him to regain that form.

Even at his worst, Giolito is a guy who takes the ball every fifth day and eats innings. This past season he had 184.1 innings of work which would've led the Mets by 18 frames. He's made at least 29 starts with at least 160 innings of work in each of the last five full seasons (excluding the shortened 2020 season).

Giolito would not require the same commitment as Snell or Montgomery. Snell and Montgomery would both require lengthy long-term deals worth in excess of $150 million. Giolito on the other hand might require a two or three-year deal worth roughly $20 million annually. That's a major difference. Bring him in to eat innings. Anything additional he can provide would just be gravy.

3) Teoscar Hernandez

The Mets did pull off a deal to acquire Tyrone Taylor along with Adrian Houser from the Brewers, but Taylor profiles as more of a fourth outfielder. With that in mind, the Mets desperately need a third outfielder to play alongside Brandon Nimmo and Starling Marte.

The 2023 version of Cody Bellinger on this Mets team would be a great fit, but there's no way of knowing if he'll be the MVP-caliber player or if he'll be one of the worst hitters in baseball like he was in 2021 and 2022. The Mets should take the risk of giving Bellinger a massive deal and should instead focus on the next tier. The perfect fit in my opinion was Lourdes Gurriel Jr., but he has re-signed with the Diamondbacks. Next on that list is Teoscar Hernandez who makes a lot of sense.

Hernandez is coming off a down year with the Mariners, but still hit 26 home runs and drove in 93 runs. 26 home runs in a down year playing half the time at pitcher-friendly T-Mobile Park is absolutely something the Mets would love to add.

As intriguing as Hernandez's power is, he's far from a perfect player. The outfielder fanned 211 times this past season, ranking among the league leaders in that category. He also posted just a .305 OBP thanks to a lack of walks which is subpar at best. Hernandez's defense also leaves a lot to be desired, although he had a better year in the field this past season.

With the outfield market so weak, the Mets will have to look past the deficiencies and focus on all the good he can provide. Hernandez fits the bill as a big bopper in the middle of the order that the Mets need, and shouldn't break the bank with his contract.

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3 Mets free agent targets they must not lose out on next

1) Justin Turner

2) Lucas Giolito

3) Teoscar Hernandez

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