Regardless of whether or not Major League Baseball hands down a suspension to Jeurys Familia stemming from his recent arrest, the Mets need to add another reliever to the bullpen. Seeing how the Indians relied on Bryan Shaw, Andrew Miller, and Cody Allen during the postseason, many believe the Mets should create their own trio this offseason.
In order to do that, the Mets would need to add one of Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen, or Mark Melancon. That may not be likely considering each one of them will command a lot of money this offseason. Each player should receive a contract with an average annual value in excess of $10 million. That’s a steep price for a Mets team that has a lot of needs to address this offseason notably re-signing Yoenis Cespedes and Neil Walker.
With that in mind, the Mets will have to turn their attention to the next tier of free agent relievers in the hopes of not only obtaining someone who can lock down the seventh inning, but also someone who can take Addison Reed‘s spot in the eighth inning should Familia face a suspension. Here are a list of five potential targets:
2016 Stats: 3-7, 3.91 ERA, 75 G, 6 SV, 1.113 WHIP
Like Reed in 2015, Salas was a beneficiary of the Mets pitch framing. In 17 appearances, he was 0-1 with a 2.08 ERA, a 0.635 WHIP, and a 9.9 K/9. He has shown the ability not just to pitch in New York, but also to pitch in New York with a postseason berth on the line. Additionally, he has closing experience. Accordingly, the Mets should be interested in a reunion with Salas.
2016 Stats: 4-7, 2.25 ERA, 69 G, 22 SV, 1.368 WHIP
The 37-year old Ziegler is coming off yet another good year out of the pen. The side-winding Ziegler does not throw the ball hard, topping off with an 86 MPH sinker, but he keeps the ball in the ballpark by generating a lot of ground balls. As we have seen with Bartolo Colon, it is not really about how hard you throw, it’s about location and movement, which has been Ziegler’s forte. With him serving in a couple of different bullpen roles, he is an attractive free agent. Aside from his age, the one caution is that lefties have hit .271/.365/.392 off of him in his career.
2016 Stats: 2-5, 3.46 ERA, 54 G, 6 SV, 1.250 WHIP
The former 2006 Mets third round pick has had a successful 10 year career. From 2011-2014, he was absolutely dominant with a 2.25 ERA and a 1.060 WHIP over that stretch. He regressed a bit the past two seasons before getting traded to the Cubs in August. With the Cubs excellent pitch framers, he rebounded in his 16 appearances over the final two months of the season pitching to a 2.51 ERA and a 1.116 WHIP. The hope is, like Salas, Smith would benefit from the Mets catching staff. If so, a side-armed reliever, who has become a platoon neutral reliever, and has closing experience should be a good addition to the Mets bullpen in 2017.
2015 Stats: 3-2, 3.83 ERA, 48 G, 32 SV, 1.455 WHIP
Before the 2015 season, Holland was a dominant closer that helped the Royals reach the 2014 World Series. He had a high 90s fastball with a mid to high 80s slider, a high 80s splitter, and a high 70s curveball. He was close to unhittable as evidenced by his 12.1 career K/9. Unfortunately, Holland required Tommy John. By Opening Day 2017, he will be 18 months removed from his surgery meaning he could be ready to return to form. Whichever team signs him could be getting the free agent bargain of the offseason.
2016 Stats: 7-2, 2.48 ERA, 75 G, 0 SV, 1.013 WHIP
After taking 2014 off, Blanton returned to baseball. While he had his struggles with the Royals, the Pirates gambled on him in an August trade. Blanton rewarded their faith by becoming dominant in the bullpen. In the offseason, the Dodgers hoped that Blanton’s stint with the Pirates wasn’t a mirage, and they were rewarded with a terrific season.
As a reliever, Blanton still throws all four of his pitches, but he mainly has become a fastball-slider pitcher, which is the type of pitcher Dan Warthen typically has success handling. While Blanton doesn’t have closer experience, he did finish 15 games this season, and he only lost the lead once in his 75 appearances. The caution with him is his age (36 next year) and seeing how well he will hold up in the bullpen a year after he was heavily used in the bullpen for the first time in his career.
Not mentioned is Jerry Blevins, who the Mets should make an effort re-sign. The aforementioned five pitchers could be difference makers in the bullpen, and they could help cushion the blow should Familia face a long suspension in 2017.
