3 Mets players who will be fighting for an Opening Day roster spot

2. Mets outfielder Khalil Lee

In one of the more minor moves of last season's offseason, the Mets acquired Khalil Lee in a three-team trade. It was the trade that sent Andrew Benintendi to the Royals. Lee was immediately one of the Mets' better prospects, and he's currently ranked eighth on the Mets' top 30 prospects list according to mlb.com. Lee is the second-best outfield prospect in the Mets system, just one spot behind Alex Ramirez.

The Mets currently have Brandon Nimmo, Starling Marte, and Mark Canha expected to start in the outfield for the 2022 season. There are other guys who can also play the outfield like Jeff McNeil and Dom Smith, but I don't expect either guy to have a regular role in an outfield spot.

The only other outfielders on the Mets 40-man roster are Nick Plummer and Lee. The Mets just signed Plummer this offseason to provide depth, although he has had just 75 at bats in AAA and none at the Major League level. I'd be very surprised if he made the team out of Spring Training.

That leaves Lee as the only feasible backup outfielder on the 40-man roster. Lee did have a cup of coffee with the Mets in 2021, but it couldn't have gone much worse at the plate. He had one hit in 18 at bats, including 13 strikeouts. He simply looked overmatched.

Once Lee went back down to AAA, he played very well. He slashed .274/.451/.500 with 14 home runs and 37 RBI. Lee showed a lot of discipline and power at the Minor League level, but he still struck out a ton. Because of that, I believe he would benefit from more time in Syracuse. I expect the Mets to sign a veteran to fill the fourth outfielder role that Kevin PIllar was supposed to fill before all of the injuries last season.