3 Mets rumors we'll be glad never came true, 3 we'll wish did happen

We’ll be glad the Mets rumors of signing Aroldis Chapman never came true

The Mets searched high and low for relief pitchers this winter. They made a few early additions. One name that circulated was Aroldis Chapman.

For $10.5 million, he’ll be a stopper in the Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen. His success last year, mostly with the Kansas City Royals prior to getting traded to the Texas Rangers, was enough to convince the typically frugal Pirates to spend heavily on a reliever who might not even close for them.

Chapman was already an outside possibility for the Mets due to his past suspension for domestic violence. The Mets have stayed away from players like this. With employees, we’ve seen how quickly they’ve eliminated them, too.

The thing with rumors is we’ll never know just how real they are or who’s leaking the information. Chapman’s camp might have been the ones using the Mets as leverage—something we’re all going to need to get used to.

Because of the contract amount, Chapman was never a realistic possibility for the Mets. They spent low on the bullpen additions they did make.

The biggest reason we’ll be glad the Mets rumors focused on Chapman never came true is that the club can get just as much from Jake Diekman. The Mets waited out his market. For less money and in a similar role, they’ll have a solid second-lefty to turn to alongside Brooks Raley without having to pay a ton.