With the Astros hoisting their World Series trophy in front of the Houston faithful on Friday, all eyes are now focused on the offseason. For the Mets, they will have a tall task of returning to the playoffs in 2018.

While general manager Sandy Alderson said in September that the team is unlikely to match their $155 million payroll from this past season, the team still has some holes to fill throughout their roster that will require some spending.

John Harper of the New York Daily News on Thursday released his top 20 free agents with projected landing spots and he has the Mets inking three players: Jay Bruce, infielder Eduardo Nunez and reliever Brandon Kintzler. The full list can be found here.

He projects that these free agents will be worth $38 million combined. Let’s do a little payroll breakdown.

MLB Trade Rumors recently released an outlook for the Mets offseason with a few important nuggets.

The team has five guaranteed contracts for next year currently, now that Asdrubal Cabrera and Jerry Blevins have had their player options picked up:

The team also has several players that are eligible for salary arbitration:

The top two, Aoki and Milone, have been non-tendered. The former was due for a big payday and the latter vastly under performed in 2017.

With the roster’s current makeup of players, the payroll stands around $100-102 million, if you take away Aoki and Milone’s projected salaries. With Harper’s predictions, this would leave the payroll around the $140 million range, which is $15 million less than last years.

Harper isn’t taking into consideration, however, that the Mets still need to add a starting pitcher.

“If we were able to find a Bartolo-type who fits into the three, four spot and semi guarantees 180 to 200 innings, that would probably be something that would stabilize our rotation,” Alderson said in September. “So I think it’s something we look at, yes.”

Bruce would be a fantastic get if the Mets brought him back to Queens. Before being shipped off to Cleveland, he clubbed 29 home runs and drove in 75 runs while hitting to a .256/.321/.520 clip for New York. However, him coming back seems like a long shot.

The 30-year-old has played a majority of his career in Ohio with the Reds and Indians, so I’m sure returning to the latter is an appealing option. He’s also from Texas, so signing on with either the Rangers of Astros is a possibility. It just doesn’t seem like a thing the Mets will revisit.

As for Nunez, I think this is a pretty reasonable player for the Mets to pursue. The Mets need someone who can man third base, a position that has lacked stability since David Wright has been hampered by injuries.

Between the San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox in 2017, Nunez hit .313/.341/.460 with 12 homers and 58 RBI. He also swiped 24 bags which is attractive considering the Mets have struggled in that department in recent years.

At the hot corner, his numbers aren’t flashy, but they’re OK. In 447.2 innings in 2017 at third, he had zero DRS and a -1.9 UZR. However, he did commit nine errors. However, his versatility is also something I’m sure the Mets will consider as he can also play second base and shortstop.

Another name I think the Mets will keep tabs on is Todd Frazier, who Harper has going to the Giants on a three-year pact worth $39 million. The Mets are seriously lacking in the power department after trading away their big bats over the summer.

Frazier hit 27 home runs and drove in 76 runs between the White Sox and Yankees this season. While he only hit to a .213/.344/.428 clip, his numbers in the field were very solid. He was good for 10 DRS and a 6.7 UZR in 1107.2 innings.

Lastly, Kintzler would be a nice get to help solidify the bullpen and could complement incumbents Jerry Blevins, AJ Ramos and Jeurys Familia nicely.

The eight-year veteran appeared in his first All-Star Game in 2017 and pitched to a 4-3 record with a 3.08 ERA in 72 games between the Minnesota Twins and Washington Nationals.

Another bullpen piece would be a good move for the Mets, who had a plethora of issues out there in 2017. But to start off with a group of Kintzler, Blevins, Ramos and Familia to go along with say Paul Sewald, another incumbent like Chasen Bradford and maybe a potential starter turned reliever like Zack Wheeler, Seth Lugo or Robert Gsellman looks good on paper.

However, I want to reiterate that it’s of utmost importance the Mets sign an innings eater type pitcher. You can’t go into next season with the in house options that collectively fell victim to the injury bug in 2017.

Bringing in someone like R.A. Dickey on a one-year deal could make sense after he was recently cut loose by the Atlanta Braves. He pitched in 190 innings for the Bravos this past season and could be a nice fifth starter. Plus, he’s already familiar with the Big Apple.

Some other names I believe the Mets will consider are Lance Lynn, Alex Cobb, Jason Vargas, Tyler Chatwood and Jaime Garcia.

The Mets have made the right moves so far this offseason by bringing in a new and improved coaching staff. Next on their list is to bring in some quality and durable players that can help the Mets get back on the right track.