While the first workouts of spring training down in Port St. Lucie are looming on the horizon as the calendar turns to 2025, there are still several notable holes for the Mets front office to fill over the next few weeks.
The roster is far from a finished project for the Mets to take a step forward from playoff hopefuls to bonafide World Series contenders heading into the 2025 season.
While the Mets made the biggest splash of the offseason in bringing in Juan Soto on a record deal and fortifying the starting rotation by staging a reunion with Sean Manaea and adding on Clay Holmes and Frankie Montas, the lineup and bullpen still have the feeling of being an incomplete product.
With a few items still on the Mets front office’s agenda, here are a few scenarios as they look to fortify their roster:
Who’s on first? Pete Alonso or someone else?
Despite adding one of the best hitters in baseball in Soto in December, there are still some noticeable voids in the Mets’ lineup as the calendar turns to 2025. Chief among those holes is at first base and in the cleanup spot after having the fortunes of regularly penciling in Pete Alonso in both spots for the last six seasons.
With a host of signings coming across MLB last month, Alonso remains one of the biggest names — and bats — on the free agent market. The leaders of the Mets organization, namely owner Steve Cohen and president of baseball operations David Stearns, have regularly voiced their affinity for the four-time All-Star and his place in Flushing.
So what gives?
25 Mets predictions for 2025:Pete Alonso deal, Juan Soto power, another round vs Dodgers
Alonso is coming off one of his worst offensive seasons of his career in 2024, when he slashed .240/.329/.459 with a career-worst 34 home runs and 88 RBI across a full season. He turned 30 years old during the Winter Meetings in early December.
The first baseman market has been set with Christian Walker inking a three-year, $60 million deal with the Astros, Paul Goldschmidt landing with the Yankees on a one-year, $14 million deal and Carlos Santana going to the Guardians for one-year, $12 million. On the trade market, the Nationals brought in Nathaniel Lowe from the Rangers and the Diamondbacks added Josh Naylor from the Guardians.
The combination of those moves puts Alonso’s market in an interesting place. Alonso’s camp sees a player who continues to provide some of the best power in the game, evidenced by his 226 home runs over his six seasons in the league, along with one of the most durable players in the league. He’s coming off playing in all 162 games — just the second Mets player in team history to achieve that feat — and adding a clutch playoff performance.
But Alonso’s defense is average at best, with a -9 outs above average last season that was in the bottom three percent of MLB. And his plodding pace on the basepaths will not be getting any better over the life of his future deal. His weighted on-base average (WOBA) was the lowest mark (.340) of his career in 2024.
While Alonso and his team are likely seeking security in the form of a longer-term deal, the Mets seem to prefer higher average money per year over a shorter-term deal.
How about at designated hitter?
If Carlos Mendoza had to configure a lineup card today, his choices at designated hitter would be limited to Starling Marte, Tyrone Taylor, Jose Siri or an upstart in Brett Baty, Luisangel Acuña or Ronny Mauricio.
There is a clear need for the Mets to add some depth and versatility to their lineup. One of the top left-handed hitting DH options came off the board in late December when Joc Pederson signed a two-year, $37 million deal with the Rangers. The Mets reportedly had some interest there, according to the New York Post’s Jon Heyman.
So the front office is seeking to fill in that need of a spark plug at designated hitter heading into 2025.
An intriguing option remains bringing back Jesse Winker, who fit in well after being acquired by the Mets ahead of the trade deadline. The 31-year-old, who was on a one-year, $2 million deal, closed 2024 with a .764 OPS, 14 home runs and 58 RBI.
Get the ball to Edwin Diaz
A month has passed since David Stearns expressed a feeling that the Mets would be adding to their bullpen during the Winter Meetings.
“I think over the course of the off season we’ll do that,” said Stearns on the need to add high-leverage or proven arms to the bullpen. “We have a lot of time left. I have confidence in probably our core group that returns back there, but we have some openings, and I’m certain we’ll make some additions to that group as the offseason goes along.”
The only Mets move to address that need since the Winter Meetings was on the outskirts of the major league roster, with left-hander Anthony Gose joining the team on a minor-league deal on Dec. 20. Maybe Griffin Canning could factor in a swing role, as well, after signing one day earlier.
But there remains a need to bridge the gap to Edwin Diaz in the ninth inning. And the top of the reliever market has yet to move, with left-hander Tanner Scott as the top available arm, coming off a 9-6 record with a 1.75 ERA and 84 strikeouts in 72 innings for the Marlins and Padres last season.
Beyond Scott, the timeless David Robertson, a former Met, looms after tossing a career-high 72 innings with a 3.00 ERA at age 39. Fellow veterans Kenley Jansen and Kirby Yates are also available, while Carlos Estevez, who notched 26 saves last season, is an intriguing option at age 32. Or the team could look to bring back Ryne Stanek, who flourished down the stretch in 2024.
As it stands, the Mets will be leaning on a quartet of upstarts from 2024 in Reed Garrett, Dedniel Nuñez, Jose Buttoand Danny Young as key cogs in the team’s bullpen puzzle, along with trade deadline acquisition Huascar Brazoban and other non-roster invitees to spring training.
