Ranking 5 realistic options at third base for the Mets in 2024

4) Matt Chapman signs a long-term deal to be the Mets third baseman

This ranking is not a knock on Matt Chapman, an All-Star caliber player that would fit fantastically onto this roster, both in the lineup and in the field. Instead, this is a knock on the money it would take to sign Matt Chapman. As we've mentioned before, Chapman is projected by Bleacher Report to sign this offseason for something in the range of six years, $180 million.

The Mets are paying the likes of Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, and others more money to play for other teams than some teams are paying for its entire roster. While this is evidence that certain small market owners should find a new hobby where they actually spend their billions of dollars instead of holding entire cities hostage with their miserly ways, it doesn't change the fact that Steve Cohen has a limit to how much cash he wants to set on fire.

If the Mets do nothing at all to address their starting pitching in free agency, their starting rotation in 2024 will be Kodai Senga, Jose Quintana, Tylor Megill, David Peterson, and Cow-Bell Man. For Mets fans that have suffered most of their lives, this is a bridge too far. At minimum, two quality starters from free agency need to be brought in, and you could very easily talk me into Mike Vasil rounding things out by making the jump to the majors.

Going after the likes of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Julio Urias, Aaron Nola, and others will not be cheap. Matt Chapman will be very good for some team in 2024 and beyond, but he can only help the Mets so much if they have no pitching.