Mets Monday Morning GM: 3 free agent targets who no longer make sense

Good Monday morning, New York Mets fans. What’s that smile on our faces? It must be the MLB Winter Meetings. It’s a period when the Hot Stove tends to burn through steel.

The Mets have actively added to the roster already. In doing so, several holes have been filled or the direction has been steered elsewhere.

Winter has yet to officially arrive and yet these three free agents already no longer make sense for the Mets to sign.

1) Cody Bellinger or any other player who received a qualifying offer other than Shohei Ohtani

There was never a realistic shot the Mets would sign a free agent who turned down the qualifying offer, was there? They’d lose two draft picks and international bonus slot money because of how much they spent on last year’s payroll. It just doesn’t fit in with their approach of taking things slowly. Because of this, Cody Bellinger is off the table along with the rest of his qualifying offer buddies.

Bellinger headlines this list because aside from the starting pitchers, he was the guy for the Mets to get. A power-hitting lefty capable of playing center field at a high level is a rare breed. The former MVP rebounded so well last year with the Chicago Cubs, both Dennis Rodman and your last girlfriend who had a new beau the day after you broke up would be jealous.

Bellinger does come with some risks and even before receiving the QO from the Cubs was someone not every Mets fan was on board with signing. What if he regresses back to those dark final years with the Los Angeles Dodgers? Bellinger will be one of the pricier players signed this offseason. It’s not going to be the Mets who give him a contract. My dream Mets starting lineup still hasn't changed.

2) Justin Turner

The Justin Turner reunion with the Mets would have been a nice tribute to go alongside the hiring of David Stearns as a way of subtly sticking it to the Wilpon Era. Turner had a pretty awesome year last season with the Boston Red Sox. Now mostly a first baseman and DH, he’s less of a fit to rejoin the Mets because of the lack of positional versatility.

Mets fans suffered through a year and a half of Daniel Vogelbach being on the roster without ever playing an inning in the field. Understandably, if he had played the field, there would have been a different kind of suffering, too.

Turner’s bat could help the Mets for sure. The problem is they’d be adding another guy who doesn’t do much else. Surely, he can play third base if needed. However, do the Mets even need someone else at that position? Why not one of the many outfielders a little more tied to playing at least half of the season in the field for the DH role?

If the Mets did sign Turner, it’s not worth throwing a chair. He’d be a very good placeholder. The problem is his presence might limit day-to-day lineups. There’d be less of a chance of seeing Francisco Alvarez play a little more because the DH spot is blocked. Exactly when would Mark Vientos even get his shot?