Reese Kaplan -- Mets Offseason Roster Bullet List -- Week Two

Mack's Mets will summarize players mentioned as possible new members of the team available via trade or free agency that have popped up in the media associated with them as a part of the 40 man roster.  These bullet points are not necessarily factual as if they were leaked from the Mets front office.  They comprise opinions, rumors and hypotheticals that various Mets beat writers and bloggers have felt necessary to put out into public notice.  Like EPA gas mileage ratings, take the news with a grain of salt.  We share but don’t necessarily endorse any of these transactions.

Major League Players

• The floodgates have now opened for teams to consider signing alternatives to the now-signed Juan Soto.  Former Met Pete Alonso is close to leading this list given his undeniable power hitting ability and a 162 game average of .249 with 43 HRs and 112 RBIs while showing great physical resiliency not having missed much time at all during his career due to injury.  His defense has improved over what it once was but no one will ever confuse him with Keith Hernandez.  This past week the Seattle Mariners and Minnesota Twins both emerged as pre-Soto rumored destinations for the big man.  However, now that Soto is signed, the Mets also must address first base and he may provide an Aaron Judge-like protection in the order for Soto.  It also has been suggested a gut punch back at the Mets for the Yankees is to sign Alonso since they took Soto away from them.
• Christian Walker is soaring to the top of many lists as there are few in-their-prime first basemen available.  Consider him as Alonso lite.  His typical season would provide a .250 average to go with 29 HRs and 86 RBIs.  Coming off a contract just under $11 million with the Diamondbacks, he’s going to cost quite a bit less than Alonso.  Bear in mind he’s 3+ years older, so that plays against his price as well.  He is a stellar fielder and the Yankees, Mariners, Twins and others have surfaced as possibilities. 
• After five years playing for the Rockies Jeff Hoffman made his way over to the Reds and then spent the last two years with the Phillies.  Earning just $2.2 million and having made the 2024 All Star squad, it was a bit surprising that the Mets’ Eastern division rival didn’t make much more of an effort to sign him.  His combined numbers for 2023 and 2024 and pretty startling.  He appeared in 122 games covering 118+ innings with an 8-5 record, an eye popping 2.28 ERA, a WHIP under 1.000 and a 5:1 strikeout to walk ratio with 158 Ks in those 118 IP.  He’s going to get a multiyear contract and a big increase in pay, but still will be highly affordable to the multitude of teams rumored to be showing interest.
• Ex-Mets Sean Manaea and Jose Quintana are both still out there with some mentions of other teams but nothing substantive just yet.  Given the price tags given to lesser pitchers like Luis Severino it’s possible Manaea is hoping to hit the $25 million per year mark.  Quintana is likely looking to get some $10 million or more less than that given his age though his career ERA is actually better than Manaea’s.  If Jose Iglesias understands that his role would mirror what he got in 2024 as a top backup infielder, then most everyone would welcome him back with open arms. 

Foreign Players Available As Free Agents

• Hyeseong Kim is a second baseman and occasionally outfielder whose offensive numbers would probably play better on the infield than elsewhere.  The young 26 year old is a lifetime .304 hitter and has stolen as many as 46 bases in a season.  He doesn’t have much power but gets on base regularly with a high OBP of .364.  He’s stolen 211 bases and been caught just 37 times.  Several teams have shown interest in this Korean ballplayer, the Mets vaguely among them.
• Veteran pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano is a Japanese hurler with a pretty sensational set of stats to back up his long career.  Now at age 35 the pitcher holds an impressive 136-74 record with a career ERA of just 2.43.  While not a true whiff specialist, he still holds a career WHIP a tick over 1.000 and demonstrates remarkable 1.7 K per 9 IP rate.  Given his age he’s not going to get a long term deal like a Corbin Burnes or Max Fried, but if you’re seeking quality at a reasonable price he’s certainly worth a long, hard look.

Minor League Players

• There has been quite a bit of chatter about the Mets swapping Brett Baty for another struggling high draft pick from another organization who might feel this type of change-of-scenery deal is what both players need.  Various names have arisen for the Mets in this regard, but it could be Baty would go for a middle reliever or as part of a package.

Trade Rumors

• A story arose this week that the Cardinals for absolutely unknown reasons are considering trying to trade star reliever Ryan Helsey.  If the name isn’t ringing the same bells as other closers then it’s time you dig out the statistics and let your head wrap itself around the numbers.  After a league leading 49 saves last season, he’s shown it was not a one-time thing.  The 30 year old right hander is a two-time All Star and holds a nice 28-14 career record working out of the pen, a career 2.63 ERA and a career WHIP of 1.096.  How would you like to see him setting up for Edwin Diaz (or replacing Edwin Diaz if the Mets decide he’s worth more as a trade chip than continuing the on-again/off-again good seasons from their current 9th inning guy?  Right now Helsey is just hitting arbitration for 2025 and will be eligible for free agency in 2026.  It would take a boatload of prospects to land him, but if you’re talking about players who are blocked at the major league level (ahem, Ronny Mauricio or Luisangel Acuna), then it might be a deal worth making. 
• The Seattle Mariners have been somewhat willing to discuss a deal for starting pitcher Luis Castillo.  He is a relatively big ticket purchase but for a team that just felt they could offer up the biggest contract in baseball history, the big right hander was paid just north of $24 million in 2024 and is signed through 2027 at the same rate with an automatic vesting option for 2028 if he meets innings pitched levels in the deal.  That means you’d be bringing in a nearly $100 million guy who throws to a career 3.56 ERA.  That’s pretty good but the question becomes would you rather put that money into someone like Sean Manaea without giving up player resources in addition to the money?  Why sacrifice players like Jett Williams when for the same money you could sign a free agent.