3 free agents we're thankful the Mets didn't sign this offseason
The New York Mets had one of the patented aggressive offseasons this past winter under the ownership of Steve Cohen. They didn’t give us everything we wanted. Plenty of quality players signed elsewhere either by their own choosing or because the Mets and Billy Eppler walked away from them.
Many of us pleaded with the front office to make these moves. It felt necessary to bring these guys in.
It turns out the Mets were wise to step and let these land with another ball club.
1) NY Mets rumors: Jose Abreu would not have been a great fit
Jose Abreu hitting behind Pete Alonso is mouth-watering. The Mets had their chance this offseason. Instead, they went with the cheaper option of keeping Daniel Vogelbach and platooning him with Tommy Pham and any other righty they could get. It was a disappointing choice to say the least.
Abreu was more of a dream addition than a realistic one. An imperfect fit already because carrying two first basemen is never wise, his performance with the Houston Astros this year confirms the Mets are much better off without him.
Through 31 games, Abreu is slashing .232/.267/.264 without a home run. His power numbers were way down last year with the Chicago White Sox. He made up for it by hitting over .300. He found ways to drive in runs without going yard.
Abreu got a lofty deal from the Astros this offseason which will pay him $19.5 million each season for three years. It’s looking like the defending champions bought an expired player whose best days have passed him by.
2) NY Mets rumors: Re-signing Taijuan Walker looks like it would’ve been a massive failure
There are a couple of free agent pitchers the Mets let go this offseason. Jacob deGrom was the biggest and his injuries make letting him leave a bit easier. Chris Bassitt hasn’t been sharp for the Toronto Blue Jays. But it’s Taijuan Walker whose failings with the Philadelphia Phillies puts him ahead of them.
Walker has been atrocious in Philly. After 6 starts he’s 2-2 with a 6.91 ERA. Instead of imploding in the second half like he did in 2021, Walker is giving the Phillies regular dud outings on the mound every few days.
The four-year contract worth $72 million the Phillies signed Walker to was easy for the Mets to walk away from. Even those who believed he had some upward momentum (raises hand) couldn’t believe he was able to secure as much money as he did in free agency.
Several major free agent additions have performed poorly this year with their new ball clubs. Walker’s numbers are some of the worst. The only positive is that he has actually gotten onto the field.
The Mets and Phillies have yet to play each, however, odds are in favor of Walker appearing on SNY this year in red or powdered blue. Will he figure it out by then? Desperately, the Phillies need him to.
3) NY Mets rumors: A Michael Conforto reunion would’ve been bad
Is it really a Mets hot stove season without talks about Michael Conforto either getting extended or coming back? From about 2020-onward, there were always Mets rumors about a potential long-term relationship. It never did happen and Conforto ended up sitting out all of 2022. Now with the San Francisco Giants, we look to the heavens and thank Billy Eppler for not making this move.
After 26 games, Conforto is slashing .193/.311/.341. He does have four home runs but he has struck out 34 times for a massively bad rate after a month-plus. Instead of helping to turn the Giants’ fortunes around, Conforto is blending in as a minor contributor.
The thing about Conforto is he was never a very good fit at all for returning to Queens. He could’ve been on the roster instead of Tommy Pham which then raises the question of how much playing time Conforto could even get. The Mets would be overpaying for an outfielder to stick in one of the corners part-time.
Emotionally, it would’ve put us all through the same rollercoaster from 2021 when Conforto last played for the team. Enough time has passed where many of us have forgotten what a frustrating player he was in his final year with the Mets.
There is still a chance Conforto rumors return. Who doesn’t expect at some point during his current contract that there are rumblings of a potential trade with the Giants back to the Mets? It’s going to happen. We’re going to unite in not wanting to see it.