2 free agents and 1 trade target to replace Ronny Mauricio on the roster

Citi Field was built on an ancient burial ground. It’s the only way to explain the New York Mets. Ronny Mauricio suffered a torn ACL and the timetable for his return, while unknown, isn’t so great. The Mets are now expected to look externally for some help.

This goes against what the Mets had planned. A competition between Mauricio and Brett Baty and maybe even Mark Vientos and someone else was going to happen in the spring then continue into the regular season. Rather than just hand the third base job over to Baty, the Mets will reportedly at least try to find someone to fight for starts.

The crop of third base options after Matt Chapman, who won’t compete for any innings at third base, is limited. What can the Mets do to replace Mauricio on the roster?

Justin Turner suddenly makes more sense than ever

Justin Turner was already a logical fit to become the team’s DH. The Mauricio news should have them making him their primary choice. Although he shifted away from playing much third base last year, his presence on the roster can provide them with a little more of a safety net in case of injury or Baty just isn’t reliable enough.

In fact, the Mets could conceivably sign Turner and someone else from this list if they chose. A lot might depend on how they feel about Vientos and some of the other optional players they currently have. It’s not preposterous for the Mets to begin the year with only four outfielders. Jeff McNeil is already built in to play there whenever needed.

Why it works: Turner can start at third once or twice a week and another time at first base while giving Pete Alonso a day at the DH spot. Having Joey Wendle around is defensive insurance for the Mets in case Turner really is at the stage of his career where offense is all he can offer. On a one or two-year deal, Turner isn’t getting in the way of the rest of the roster either. He proved he can still hit. There are no real cons to this one because if the Mets see an opening, they can add one of these other players to the roster as well.

Gio Urshela is a match again

Before the team signed Wendle, Gio Urshela was a personal preferred choice for that roster spot. Understandably, they went smaller and cheaper. Wendle can’t expect to start on a major league roster. Urshela, however, might have hopes of doing so.

The trouble with convincing Urshela to sign with the Mets is there isn’t as much room on the roster for him as there would be with Turner as a natural DH. Urshela would have to share duties with Baty at third base. For sure capable of playing second base as well but far less experienced, maybe he even starts there instead of McNeil anytime the Mets run him out into a corner outfield spot or give him the day off.

Urshela played in only 62 games last season for the Los Angeles Angels so he could end up as a candidate to sign a shorter deal to regain some value. Are the Mets really the best place for him to do it?

Why it doesn’t work: The big issue with signing Urshela is he probably would want to play much more than they could offer. On a roster without Turner as the DH, Urshela is valuable as it can allow the Mets to rotate through who gets those at-bats. The problem is the offense fails to get a major boost. Urshela is a good defender at third base. Turner is capable of putting up All-Star numbers at the plate. With Wendle already in-tow, Turner feels much more appealing than adding another lighter-hitting player.