1 reason Tyler Glasnow makes sense for the Mets, 1 reason he doesn't

It doesn't matter what's said by players after they're traded or how low the front office can knock down expectations. New York Mets fans expect the team to be in on all of the best available players this offseason. This includes free agents and any trade possibilities that may pop up.

One of the players we'll hear plenty about in rumors this offseason is Tampa Bay Rays starter Tyler Glasnow. An absolute stud on the mound, he definitely seems to be in a position to get moved this winter.

Could the Mets do some chasing? Let's look at one reason why a trade does make sense and another why it didn't.

Tyler Glasnow gets real expensive in 2024, but not too expensive for the Mets

What were the Rays thinking? The contract extension he signed with them includes a gigantic bump this year. He’ll go from making $5.35 million in 2023 all the way to $25 million in 2024.

The typically frugal Rays have a potential financial burden on their hands. Glasnow is going to eat up a huge chunk of the payroll. Finding a trade partner only seems logical for a ball club that has routinely flipped players when they've become more expensive. That time has come.

Glasnow makes sense for the Mets because of how powerful Steve Cohen is when it comes to spending. He's one of the few owners who'd conceivably take on the full contract of anyone if it could improve his ball club. A $25 million starting pitcher is chump change for him.

The money factor has the Mets right in the thick of things. What’s stopping them?

Tyler Glasnow is an injury risk waiting to happen

Glasnow logged a career-high 21 starts and 120 innings last year. That’s pretty lousy for a guy who has been around the league for as long as he has been. A shortened 2020 season and some rough patches early on with the Pittsburgh Pirates help explain away a part of it. It still doesn’t make up for multiple years of dominating on the hill and getting injured along the way. 

Tommy John Surgery caught him in mid-2021. This past year, an oblique injury held him out until May 27. He’d miss time again in early August.

Glasnow is not the kind of durable pitcher the Mets want to rely on. The talent is there. It’s just too difficult for the Mets to justify the dependence of their 2024 season on him.

If the Mets are going to try to spend more wisely instead of freely, Glasnow goes against the plot. He’s an “all chips into the center” kind of addition worth making if you can live with him missing significant time.